American universities said branch campuses in Qatar were operating normally Monday while they monitored diplomatic developments in the Gulf nation.
After Saudi Arabia and other Arab powers severed diplomatic ties and shut down land, sea and air links with the energy-rich nation, Northwestern University, Texas A&M University, Georgetown University, Virginia Commonwealth University said they were keeping their Qatar faculty and students informed while summer classes continued.
“The safety and security of our students, faculty and staff are top priorities of the university,” Northwestern spokesman Alan Cubbage said in a statement echoed by the others.
The universities, along with Weill Cornell Medical College and Carnegie Mellon University, have programs in Qatar’s “Education City” complex, which was established by the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development to enable Qataris and others to earn US degrees without going abroad.
Regional airlines announced they would suspend service to Qatar’s capital, Doha, where the 25,000-acre Education City is situated.
“It is too early to know the real impact on VCU Qatar, including travel plans of our students, faculty and staff,” said Pamela DiSalvo Lepley, spokeswoman at Virginia Commonwealth University, whose Qatar campus has 28 students enrolled for the summer session. About 365 students are enrolled during the academic year.
The Qatar Foundation was established in 1995 by then-ruler of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. Members of the ruling family and influential government ministers serve as trustees and directors.
“We are monitoring the situation closely and keeping our community apprised through regular communications,” Georgetown University said in a statement. Its Qatar campus has about 10 current students from the affected countries, the statement said.
Two students from the countries that severed relations are enrolled at Northwestern University-Qatar for the summer, out of 90 overall, Cubbage said. Fewer than 20 students from the Gulf countries are enrolled at that school for the fall.
Carnegie Mellon said it was conferring with the State Department and monitoring the situation. “The university will offer any necessary assistance to any members of our community who may be affected,” the university said in a statement.
The university doesn’t have a summer session but said there were currently a “small number of students on campus.” During the academic year, about 400 students are enrolled at its Qatar campus.
Cornell University refused to comment to The Associated Press.
Universities with Qatar campuses monitor diplomatic chaos
Universities with Qatar campuses monitor diplomatic chaos
Trump claims Iran working on missiles that could hit US
- Trump says his preference is diplomacy, but would never allow Tehran to have a nuclear weapon
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed Iran is seeking to develop missiles that can strike the United States and accused Tehran of working to rebuild a nuclear program that was targeted by American strikes last year.
The United States and Iran are engaged in high-stakes negotiations over Iran’s atomic program and other issues including missiles, with Trump saying he prefers diplomacy but is willing to use force if talks fail.
“They’ve already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,” Trump said during his State of the Union address.
In 2025, the US Defense Intelligence Agency said Iran could potentially develop a militarily viable intercontinental ballistic missile by 2035 “should Tehran decide to pursue the capability,” but did not say if it had made such a decision.
Tehran currently possesses short- and medium-range ballistic missiles with ranges that top out at about 1,850 miles (3,000 kilometers), according to the US Congressional Research Service.
The continental United States is more than 6,000 miles from Iran’s western tip.
Washington and Tehran have concluded two rounds of talks aimed at reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear program to replace the agreement that Trump tore up during his first term in office.
‘Preference’ is diplomacy
The United States has repeatedly called for zero uranium enrichment by Iran but has also sought to address its ballistic missile program and support for armed groups in the region — demands Iran has rejected.
Iran has also repeatedly rejected that it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Trump ordered strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last year, claiming afterward that Tehran’s atomic program was obliterated.
On Tuesday, he said Iran wants “to start all over again,” and that it is “at this moment again pursuing their sinister nuclear ambitions.”
Trump has sent a massive US military force to the Middle East, deploying two aircraft carriers as well as more than a dozen other ships, a large number of warplanes and other assets to the region.
He has repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if negotiations fail to reach a new agreement. Talks with Tehran are currently set to continue on Thursday.
“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy but one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
The US president’s speech primarily focused on domestic issues, making no mention at all of China — Washington’s primary military and economic rival — and only briefly referring to Russia.
Trump said he was working to end the bloody conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and repeated his inaccurate claim that he had brought eight other wars to an end since returning to office in January 2025.
He also hailed NATO’s decision to spend five percent of gross domestic product on defense — a move made under heavy pressure from Trump and his administration.
