UAE: Arab states don’t seek ‘regime change’ in Qatar
(VOVWORLD) - A top United Arab Emirates official said said on Saturday that the Arab countries isolating Qatar do not seek to force out the country’s leadership but are willing to cut ties altogether if it does not agree to their 13-point list of demands.
 Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash (Photo: VNA) |
Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash told reporters in Dubai that his country and its allies do not want “regime change” in Qatar, but a “behavioral change.”
The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain presented a 13-point list of demands to Qatar on Thursday and gave it 10 days to take action. The ultimatum included demands to shut Al-Jazeera and cut ties with Islamist groups including the Muslim Brotherhood. The countries have previously suggested the demands were their bottom line, not for possibility for some negotiation. They have signaled that if Qatar refuses to comply by the deadline, they will continue to restrict its access to land, sea, and air routes indefinitely amid mounting economic pressure on the Gulf nation.