Both Bahrain News Agency (BNA) and the Qatari Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday that diplomatic relations between Qatar and Bahrain will resume.
More over two years have passed since the Arab embargo of Qatar was ended.
The three and a half year embargo against Qatar was lifted in January 2021 by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt; all countries except Bahrain thereafter resumed travel and business relations.
The GCC General Secretariat in the Saudi capital, where the decision was reached, hosted the second meeting of the Bahrain-Qatar Follow-up Committee on Wednesday, according to announcements from the two nations.
A telephone conversation between the emir of Qatar and Bahrain’s crown prince in January served as an indication that relations between the two Gulf kingdoms were improving.
The dispute that prompted the quartet to sever all ties with Qatar in 2017 was centred on Qatar’s backing of Islamist movements seen as a danger by its Arab neighbours.
As well as its associations with Iran and Turkey, two major Shi’ite Muslim nations. The four states also disagreed with Qatar on their own terms.
Saudi Arabia, a major player in the region, has taken the lead in efforts to mend fences with Qatar and has restored diplomatic ties alongside Egypt.
Deep anxiety exists regarding Qatar’s ties to Iran in Bahrain, a Sunni Muslim-run monarchy with a restive Shi’ite population. Bahrain and Qatar are at odds over territory.
