Emir of Qatar is preparing for the first White House meeting with Biden | Taliban Stories

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is expected to visit the White House this week for the first time to meet with US President. Joe Bidenas experts say the Gulf country also finds itself at the forefront of US policy.

Improving the schedule for Monday’s meeting, according to the White House, will be trying to make sure The “stability of the world power”, which is not described in detail in the ongoing conflicts with Russia in Ukraine that could see Europe looking for new ways to meet its major gas needs.

Qatar, 2.8 million countries, is the second largest exporter natural soluble gas (LNG) – a little behind the US – and has a strong market presence.

The meeting comes as the US seeks a way forward with the Taliban government in Afghanistan, where Doha has been representing Washington since November – and as US and Iranian officials. to say a variety of discussions reviving the 2015 nuclear deal in Iran could come to an end.

Qatar maintains ties with the US and Iran and, as a group of US Central Command troops in the region, has a keen interest in avoiding conflict. The Gulf region is also planning to take part in the globalization when it does 2022 FIFA World Cup in November, an event that has led to a new overhaul of migrant workers. The government has made a number of changes, but human rights groups say they have not.

“Qatar is in serious danger of the current crisis,” Omar Rahman, a Middle East political analyst and former Brookings Institution ally, told Al Jazeera. “I think Biden’s management wants to discuss their views on the matter, as well as find a way to promote their interests.”

Russia is passing

The emir’s visit to Washington, DC, comes as some US foreign policy points back to Russia’s construction of 100,000 troops at its border. and Ukrainebringing the fear of attack and inciting a major dialogue that has not really progressed.

In the midst of this crisis, Biden has been working to find a way to conserve energy in Europe, which relies on Russia for about a third of natural gas, according to Reuters, which is used to heat homes and energy in its factories and industries. .

The problem comes at a time when gas prices are still high, with global trends declining amid a coronavirus epidemic. Last week, the Bloomberg news agency reported that Biden officials had been in talks with Qatar to provide more LNG to the European Union.

Qatar already supplies about 5 percent of its supply to the continent, experts say the Gulf state is currently locked in a number of exports that could make temporary travel to Europe less difficult.

“If there are restrictions or restrictions it comes Export to Russia of gas, especially in Europe, Qatar will be one of the most important and important energy generators in the world, “said Rahman.

Asked about the reports last week, White House press secretary Jen Psaki declined to comment on Qatar, but said the US was “talking to the world’s largest gas producers to understand their potential and willingness to provide natural gas and gas extraction. European consumers ”.

Afghanistan

Meanwhile, the US has resumed flights from Afghanistan a few months later, with the Axios news agency reporting that Washington expects to expedite the evacuation of thousands of at risk Afghan civilians left behind by Western countries. in confusion he left at the end of August 2021.

The first flight departed from Kabul to Doha on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Qatar, which previously held talks between the Taliban and the US that led to the withdrawal of US troops in 2020, continues to be a treaty. dear friend to Washington in this regard.

What led Qatar to “return” [it] wants to be “like” a flexible, dynamic, helpful United States, “says Tobias Borck, a Middle East security researcher at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI).

“The departure of Afghanistan, which was a major disaster in many countries, gave Qatar the opportunity to demonstrate its power in a remarkable way, and this became known in the US and was made known elsewhere,” he told Al Jazeera, adding. led to a long-term demand strategic dialogue between countries in November.

Iran nuclear deal

Qatar Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani they discussed and his colleague Hossein Amirabdollahian in Tehran last week, which some observers say may be related to his upcoming US tour.

Iran’s media watchdog sought to dispel speculation, saying some were “making” the Tehran summit a “way to facilitate direct talks with the United States”.

However, in recent days, US and Iranian officials have said so he spoke freely a direct meeting to discuss the return to the nuclear deal, after months of negotiations in Vienna between Tehran and other signatories.

Last week, White House National Security Council spokesman Middle East Brett McGurk said the parties were “on the ball” to secure the deal but said there was “a real chance the talks could end soon”.

Qatar in public contributes to the return to the 2015 agreement.

The White House visit also marks the first meeting between the Qatari emir and the US president since the end of last year of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) crisis, which began in 2017 when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain – along with non-members of GCC Egypt – established land, air and sea blocking in Qatar.

When local relationships are involved starting well, the blockade, which led to Qatar turning to its allies around the world, “affecting Qatari foreign policy for many years,” Borck said. This was echoed by Rahman, who said the results would inform US-Qatari relations in the future.

“The closure made the United States’ stronger relationship stronger than ever,” he said, “if possible.”