Conflicting statements on mediation – Qatar defends ally Iran over gas
Qatar seems to be firmly attached to its ally Iran, as it has decided to engage in its international crises in a new way, from defense to mediation regarding the nuclear crisis. However, its attempts at defense this time have revealed some the controversial contradictions.
This came in the announcement of Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani that “the Iranian leadership told us it is ready for a compromise, regarding the Iranian nuclear file”, claiming that “reaching a solution in the Iranian file will support stability in the Gulf”.
In an interview with the German newspaper Handelsblatt, the Qatari Foreign Minister said, “Pumping additional quantities of Iranian oil into the market will help stabilize the price of crude and reduce inflation”. He added that the current global situation requires a great deal of international cohesion and more diplomatic participation.
He added: “We are currently committed with the Europeans and other partners, and we are not redirecting LNG tankers although our contracts ensure we do this if there is a higher price elsewhere.. “In addition, Qatar is now significantly increasing its gas production in a way that creates capabilities to export more liquefied gas to Europe”.
This talk about Tehran comes two days after the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, said the day before yesterday, Friday: “He hopes that an agreement will be reached between the negotiating parties on the Iranian nuclear file, expressing his country’s readiness to participate in resolving differences”.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Emir Tamim said: “We hope there will be an agreement between the parties to the nuclear agreement, and Qatar is ready to participate in resolving this dispute. We discussed the importance of the Iranian agreement with European countries and the United States, and we are optimistic about this”.
A few days ago, Mohammad Morandi, advisor to the Iranian team at the Vienna nuclear talks, explained that Tehran was waiting for the Americans to show flexibility to sign an agreement in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal”. “We are waiting to see if the Americans are willing to show flexibility to sign the agreement”.
He claimed that the Americans and Europeans are facing an economic crisis, especially the energy crisis, claiming that “these countries are in dire need of a nuclear agreement with Iran”, considering that “various factors have led to the failure to reach a nuclear agreement so far”.
Following this, Reuters revealed that the Qatari statements carry a disturbing conflict with the Iranian talk, as the Iranian Foreign Ministry said that the statements of “Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei were misinterpreted, either by mistake or deliberately, for propaganda purposes”.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khateeb Zadeh said: “The Supreme Leader made no statements about compromise, but told the Emir of Qatar: “We always say that negotiations must be productive and not a waste of time. Americans know what to do about it”.
Khateeb Zadeh continued: “It is clear from the context of the leader’s statements that he (was meant to say) that the ball is in the court of the United States which must make a wise political decision to fulfill its obligations”.
