SHAFAQNA- The Persian Gulf Cooperation Council countries will meet in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to resolve crisis in Arab-Qatari relations. Riyadh led a coalition of countries in the Gulf and beyond in 2017 to cut ties with Doha over accusations it backed radical groups. Qatar denies the claims. The row will top the agenda at Tuesday’s meeting of leaders of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) in the northwestern Saudi city of Al-Ula.
While Persian Gulf sources say an agreement on further talks and limited confidence building measures is ready, not all of the boycotting countries have yet signed up. The GCC is a bloc that includes boycotting countries Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, neutral Kuwait and Oman, and Qatar. After severing ties in June 2017, the Saudi-led alliance subsequently forced out Qatari expatriate residents, closed their airspace to Qatari aircraft and sealed their borders and ports, separating some mixed-nationality families, France24 reported.