SSB GD Series : Qatar CRISIS

In yet another destabilising event in the middle east, 6 Arab countries (Saudi Arabia, Egypt,Bahrain,Yemen and UAE and Maldives) severed their diplomatic relations with Qatar.what are the reasons for it and whats India's take on the same. Let us study the details.

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 WHY ?

1.      Blamed Qatar for instigating terrorism.

2.      Helping ISIS, Al Qaeda and Muslim Brotherhood.

3.      Saudi Arabia says Qatar was interfering with internal matters of Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia has closed AIR , WATER and Land Boundaries with Qatar ,UAE has asked Qatari Diplomats to leave the country in 48 hours and have recalled their ambassador from Qatar.

Real Reason?

   1. Saudi relation with Iran have hit the rock bottom and Qatar enjoys good diplomatic relations with them.

   2. Qatari relation with Muslim brotherhood.

   3. Frustration over Al-Jazeera’s work.

Severing Diplomatic relations and closing all three channels of transit is an extreme and surprise step and will take a lot of time and effort to normalise it in the future if ever tried.

US Angle

US has huge interest in stability of  Qatar as US-CENTCOM is located in Qatar and 10,000+ US soldiers are deployed there So US cannot  let go of Qatar completely.

Ever Since the new president  has arrived he has reversed Obama’s policy of re-approachment and labelled Iran as No 1 Destabilising force of middle East and is destroying the gains made by the Obama administration .

After 10 years oil dominance will go down but Gas Dominance will improve and maximum of the gas is located in these 3 countries

1.      Iran

2.      Russia

3.      Qatar

So they are planning to induce feud on the Iranian gas field in the future

The Real aim of US and Arab States Now is to replace the current ruling family of Qatar with another and ensure continuous supply of oil.

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India’s Dilemma

India’s Core interest in the Middle East will be

1.      Energy Security

2.      Safety of 6.5 Lakh Workers in Qatar

3.      Trade and Investment from Qatar

Most of the policy experts say India will not take a clear stand that Quat is right or Saudi Arabia is right as

1.      If India supports or is seen as supporting Saudi Arabia and Sunni Muslim Countries its ties with Iran will take the blow and Iran-Pakistan’s relation will go up and India’s policies in Afghanistan will be hit in a big way

2.      If India supports or is seen  supporting Iran  then it’s relation with Sunni countries will take the hit

  India’s Stand would be that it is an Intra Gulf Problem and should be resolved by them only.

And for the expatriate community they do not have to worry as Air link Between India and Doha is over the Persian Gulf and does not encroaches in Saudi Airspace Therefore no immediate threat to them however uncertainty is not good for any state so there might be some small problems to them.

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About the Author: Siddhartha is a Computer Science Engineer and now is working for Google. His aim is to join the Air Force and is an air force brat. His interests include watching The Flash, Limitless and Madam Secretary. He also likes to run and has taken part in many marathons.