Erdogan to visit KSA for talks on Qatar crisis/node/1131266/middle-east
Erdogan to visit KSA for talks on Qatar crisis
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan makes a speech during a ceremony marking the first anniversary of the attempted coup at the Parliament in Ankara, Turkey July 16, 2017. (REUTERS)
RIYADH: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will arrive in Saudi Arabia on July 23 to discuss key issues including the ongoing Qatar crisis.
The Anti-Terror Quartet (ATQ) — comprising Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain — last month cut diplomatic ties with Qatar over allegations it funds extremist groups and is allying with Iran, which has played a destabilizing role in the region.
Erdogan will also visit Qatar and Kuwait during his two-day trip, according to the Turkish Embassy in Riyadh. Kuwait has been leading mediation efforts between Qatar and the ATQ.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters in Ankara that Erdogan wants to visit the Gulf region with efforts focused on a solution that suits the laws of brotherly relations.
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Ankara would continue to play a “constructive and active” role to help solve the crisis.
The ATQ has issued 13 demands to restore ties including cutting funding for terrorism and shunning extremist ideology, as well as closing a Turkish military base set up after the crisis in Qatar began, which Doha has refuted.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in the Gulf last week, after a stop in Istanbul for talks aimed at defusing the crisis.
Anwar Gargash, the UAE’s state minister for foreign affairs, on Monday repeated claims that Qatar funds extremists.
“You cannot be both our friend and a friend of Al-Qaeda,” he said.
Speaking at the Chatham House international affairs think tank in London, he warned Qatar that it could not belong to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) if it undermined regional security, calling for a “change of behavior” but not “regime change.”
“This is our message: You cannot be part of a regional organization dedicated to strengthening mutual security and furthering mutual interest and at the same time undermine that security,” he said.
Arab Coalition announces ‘limited’ airstrike targeting two ships that smuggled weapons to Yemen
Coalition urges evacuation of the Port of Mukalla, signaling that a major military operation to force an STC withdrawal could be imminent
Spokesman says the two ships transported weapons from the UAE port of Fujairah to Mukalla without getting permission from Coalition command
Updated 48 min 26 sec ago
Arab News
RIYADH: The Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen on Tuesday said it conducted a “limited” airstrike targeting two ships that smuggled weapons and other military hardware into Mukalla in southern Yemen.
In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the Coalition Forces spokesman, Major General Turki Al-Maliki, said that two ships coming from the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates entered the Port of Mukalla in Hadramaut without obtaining official permits from the Joint Forces Command of the Coalition.
“The crews of the two ships disabled the tracking systems of the two ships and unloaded a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles to support the Southern Transitional Council forces in the eastern governorates of Yemen (Hadramawt, Al-Mahra) with the aim of fueling the conflict. This is a clear violation of imposing a truce and reaching a peaceful solution, as well as a violation of UN Security Council Resolution No. (2216) of 2015 AD,” said the spokesman.
The coalition urged civilians and fishermen to evacuate the Port of Mukalla, signaling that a major military operation to force an STC withdrawal could be imminent.
Google map showing the location of Mukalla in southern Yemen
Al-Maliki said the Coalition Forces acted on a request by Rashad Al-Alimi, the president of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, “to take all necessary military measures to protect civilians in the governorates of Hadramawt and Al-Mahra.”
Al-Alimi, the president of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, warned last week that unilateral actions by the STC were pushing the country toward a dangerous tipping point.
“Given the danger and escalation posed by these weapons, which threaten security and stability, the Coalition Air Forces conducted a limited military operation this morning targeting weapons and combat vehicles unloaded from the two ships at the port of Al-Mukalla. This was done after documenting the unloading, and the military operation was carried out in accordance with international humanitarian law and its customary rules, ensuring no collateral damage occurred,” spokesman Al-Maliki said on Tuesday.
He affirmed the Coalition’s "continued commitment to de-escalation and enforcing calm in the governorates of Hadramawt and Al-Mahra, and to prevent any military support from any country to any Yemeni faction without coordination with the legitimate Yemeni government and the Coalition. This is aimed at ensuring the success of the Kingdom and the Coalition’s efforts to achieve security and stability and prevent the conflict from spreading.”
Disregarding previous agreements with the Coalition, the group calling itself Southern Transitional Council, or STC, launched a sweeping military campaign early in December, seizing the governorates of Hadramaut along the Saudi border and the eastern governorate of Al-Mahra in Yemen’s border with Oman.
The UAE-backed STC forces captured the city of Seiyun, including its international airport and the presidential palace. They also took control of the strategic PetroMasila oilfields, which account for a massive portion of Yemen’s remaining oil wealth.
CaptioYemenis members of the Sabahiha tribes of Lahj, who live along the strip between the south and north of the country, gather during a rally in the coastal port city of Aden on December 14, 2025, to show their support for the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), which wants to revive an independent South Yemen. (AFP)
This prompted Saudi Arabia to issue a firm demand for the STC to withdraw and hand over the seized areas to the National Shield Forces, a Saudi-backed unit.
The coalition warned that any military movements undermining de-escalation efforts would be dealt with immediately to protect civilians, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
On Dec. 26, the UAE issued a statement welcoming Saudi Arabia’s efforts to support security and stability in Yemen.
The statement carried by state news agency WAM praised Saudi Arabia’s constructive role in advancing the interests of the Yemeni people and supporting their legitimate aspirations for stability and prosperity.
