The US President Donald Trump spoke separately on Friday with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the White House said in a statement. Trump told them that unity among Washington’s Arab partners was essential to promoting regional stability and countering the threat of Iran, the statement said.

“The president also emphasized that all countries must follow through on commitments from the Riyadh Summit to defeat terrorism, cut off funding for terrorist groups, and combat extremist ideology,” it said. Trump also spoke to Qatar’s al-Thani on Thursday. Trump told a news conference on Thursday that he would be willing to step in and mediate a dispute among the US-allied Arab states and Qatar, and said he thought a deal could come quickly.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar on June 5, suspending air and shipping routes with the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, which is home to the region’s biggest US military base. The nations say Doha supports regional foe Iran and Islamists, charges Qatar’s leaders deny.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App </s> President Trump spoke Friday with the heads of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar amid a diplomatic rift between the Gulf states.

Trump spoke separately with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, the UAE's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the White House said.

Trump emphasized that unity among Washington's Arab partners "is essential to promoting regional stability and countering the threat of Iran," according to a White House read out of the calls.

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The president "also emphasized that all countries must follow through on commitments from the Riyadh Summit to defeat terrorism, cut off funding for terrorist groups, and combat extremist ideology," it added.

Trump also spoke with Qatar's Al Thani on Thursday after meeting with the emir of Kuwait as the Trump administration ramps up its diplomatic push to resolve a rift between Qatar and its Arab neighbors.

"If I can help mediate between Qatar and, in particular, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, I would be willing to do so. And I think you’d have a deal worked out very quickly," Trump said during a White House press conference Thursday.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain cut trade and diplomatic ties to Qatar in June, alleging that the country supports Iran and extremists, something Qatar denies. </s> The Trump administration on Friday ramped up diplomatic efforts to help resolve Qatar's crisis with its Arab neighbors, which risks implications for America's military presence in the Middle East and the fight against the Islamic State group. The U.S. is also concerned that the spat among Arab governments could hamper a shared interest in blunting Iranian assertiveness in the region.

President Donald Trump spoke with Qatar's leader to affirm the importance of ending the festering, three-month-old dispute between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt, the White House said Friday.

Trump's call to Qatar's Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Thursday came after he met the emir of Kuwait, whom he thanked for his vigorous yet thus far unsuccessful mediation. Trump reasserted his demand for all countries to stop funding extremist groups. He previously has described how Arab leaders criticized Qatar for such terror financing during a regional summit in Saudi Arabia earlier this year.

Trump "underscored the importance of all countries following through on commitments from the Riyadh Summit to maintain unity while defeating terrorism, cutting off funding for terrorist groups and combatting extremist ideology," the White House said in a statement. The leaders "also discussed the continued threat Iran poses to regional stability."

The row has split key U.S. counter terrorism partners and undermined the cohesion of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a traditional bulwark of U.S.-led efforts to contain Iran's influence.

The White House released its readout of the call after Qatar's ambassador to the U.S. said the country would donate $30 million to help Texans recover from Harvey.

On Friday, talks about Qatar continued as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met senior Kuwaiti officials at the State Department to discuss regional security and Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah's mediation bid.

"We support his efforts to help bring about a settlement," Tillerson said of the Kuwaiti leader. "The United States and Kuwait both recognize the important of GCC unity to meet the challenges of the region that we all face together, not the least of which is the threats from Iran."

Trump, too, on Thursday offered support. He applauded Kuwait's "critical contributions to regional stability" and repeated an offer to mediate himself, particularly between Qatar and Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Trump suggested a deal would be "worked out very quickly" if he became personally involved.

But Trump has sent conflicting signals about where he stands on the dispute. He initially appeared to side with Saudi Arabia. Then, he instructed Tillerson to support Kuwait's mediation, shuttling between the parties in July. As the dispute has dragged on, the administration has dispatched other U.S. envoys to bolster the 88-year-old Kuwaiti emir's initiative.

At a joint news conference with Trump on Thursday, Sheikh Sabah said he remained hopeful a resolution could be reached. He noted Qatar had been presented with a list of 13 demands by the other countries and was willing to discuss them. Although Qatar has rejected some of them out of hand, Sheikh Sabah said negotiations were possible.

But underscoring the impasse, the quartet of Arab nations boycotting Doha issued a strongly worded statement early Friday morning dismissing some of the emir's comments. "Any dialogue on meeting their demands should not be preceded by any prior conditions," they said in a statement that was an unusual, personal rebuke in the clubby world of Gulf Arab states.

The crisis erupted June 5 when Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates cut ties to Qatar over allegations it funds extremists and is too cozy with Iran. Qatar hosts a U.S. military base critical to the anti-IS fight in Iraq and Syria. It denies funding extremists. It recently restored full diplomatic ties to Iran, with which it shares a massive offshore natural gas field that makes its citizens among the world's wealthiest. </s> President Donald Trump had separate phone conversations with two leaders of nations in the Persian Gulf region, discussing the ongoing disputes between Qatar and some of its Arab neighbours. Trump spoke on Monday with King Salman of Saudi Arabia and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar. The White House says Trump stressed the importance of resolving the Persian Gulf dispute in both calls. The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have blockaded Qatar since June, accusing it of supporting terrorism. With Saudi Arabia, Trump also stressed the importance of achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians and discussed efforts to defeat the Islamic State group. With Qatar, he discussed Iran’s actions in the region. </s> President Donald Trump urged the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to resolve an ongoing dispute that has upended unity in the Gulf, the White House said Tuesday.

Trump and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani discussed the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). He thanked al-Thani "for his commitment to help restore GCC unity and emphasized that it is critical to end the Gulf dispute" as well as al-Thani's "continued commitment to counter terrorist financing and extremism" during the bilateral call.

"The President and the Emir agreed on the importance of regional unity to address security threats and to ensure the prosperity of the people in the region," the White House said.

Trump "emphasized the importance of resolving the Gulf dispute and restoring a united Gulf Cooperation Council to counter Iranian malign influence and defeat terrorists and extremists" during a call with Saudi King Salman on Monday, the White House said in a separate readout.

During that call, Trump and Salman further agreed on "reinvigorating" efforts to find a political resolution to the war in Yemen, and Trump "expressed solidarity with Saudi Arabia following the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-enabled Houthi ballistic missile attacks against civilian targets in Saudi Arabia on March 25", the White House said.

"The leaders discussed a range of regional issues, including the importance of achieving a comprehensive peace between Israelis and Palestinians and opportunities to strengthen the American-Saudi strategic partnership," it added.

Last summer, a Saudi-led bloc of states -- including the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain -- collectively severed relations with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorist groups in the region.

The four-nation bloc threatened to impose further sanctions on Qatar if the latter failed to comply with a long list of demands, including the closure of Doha-based broadcaster Al Jazeera.

Qatar, however, has steadfastly refused to comply, strenuously denying the accusations leveled against it. </s> WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump had separate phone conversations with two leaders of nations in the Persian Gulf region, discussing the ongoing disputes between Qatar and some of its Arab neighbours.

Trump spoke Monday with King Salman of Saudi Arabia and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar. The White House says Trump stressed the importance of resolving the Persian Gulf dispute in both calls.

The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have blockaded Qatar since June, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

With Saudi Arabia, Trump also stressed the importance of achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians and discussed efforts to defeat the Islamic State group. With Qatar, he discussed Iran’s actions in the region. </s> WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump had separate phone conversations with two leaders of nations in the Persian Gulf region, discussing the ongoing disputes between Qatar and some of its Arab neighbors.

Trump spoke Monday with King Salman of Saudi Arabia and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar. The White House says Trump stressed the importance of resolving the Persian Gulf dispute in both calls.

The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have blockaded Qatar since June, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

With Saudi Arabia, Trump also stressed the importance of achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians and discussed efforts to defeat the Islamic State group. With Qatar, he discussed Iran's actions in the region. </s> WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump had separate phone conversations with two leaders of nations in the Persian Gulf region, discussing the ongoing disputes between Qatar and some of its Arab neighbors.

Trump spoke Monday with King Salman of Saudi Arabia and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar. The White House says Trump stressed the importance of resolving the Persian Gulf dispute in both calls.

The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have blockaded Qatar since June, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

With Saudi Arabia, Trump also stressed the importance of achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians and discussed efforts to defeat the Islamic State group. With Qatar, he discussed Iran's actions in the region. </s> WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday thanked the ruler of Qatar for "action to counter terrorism and extremism in all forms," the White House said in a statement that suggested a warming of ties between the two countries.

In June, Trump had called on Qatar to stop funding groups that commit terrorism, saying the Gulf nation had historically done so "at a very high level."

 Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, who along with Qatar are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, plus non-GCC member Egypt cut off diplomatic, travel and trade ties with Qatar last year, accusing it of supporting militants and their arch-foe Iran.

 Qatar denies the charges and says their move is aimed at curtailing its sovereignty.

 The White House statement on the call with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani did not directly address the rift but said Trump "reiterated his support for a strong, united Gulf Cooperation Council that is focused on countering regional threats."

 "The leaders discussed areas in which the United States and Qatar can partner to bring more stability to the region, counter malign Iranian influence, and defeat terrorism," it said.

 

 (Reporting by Tim Ahmann; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Bill Trott)
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Saudi Arabian, Emirati, and Qatari leaders emphasizing that unity among Arab partners is essential for regional stability and for countering Iran's threat.