Just hours after the historic embrace between <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/in-historic-turn-saudi-crown-prince-mohammed-bin-salman-embraces-qatar-emir-354655">Saudi</a> Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Qatar's emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Saudi Arabia said it had reestablished full ties with Qatar.

"What happened today is... the turning of the page on all points of difference and a full return of diplomatic relations," Prince Faisal bin Farhan at the Gulf Cooperation Council(GCC) summit at al-Ula in Saudi Arabia.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/why-saudi-arabia-cut-diplomatic-ties-with-qatar-in-2017-354675">Also Read:&nbsp;Why Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017</a>

Leaders of the six-member GCC signed two documents and a final communique as it sought to restore ties with Qatar.

The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt had taken part in a three and a half year blockade of Qatar accusing it of siding with radical forces in the region, an allegation it vehemently denied. Qatar's closeness with Iran also angered GCC.

However on Tuesday, the Gulf leaders signed the "solidarity and stability" deal bringing Qatar back into its economic fold.

"The Al-Ula Declaration "affirms our Gulf, Arab and Islamic solidarity and stability," Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said.

US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared <a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/trump-senior-aide-kushner-and-team-meets-saudi-arabias-mbs-emit-of-qatar-347783">Kushner</a> attended the signing in Al-Ula signifying the influence of the US government in latest peace moves. Amid the new friendship wave, Kuwait said an agreement had been reached to open all borders between Saudi and Qatar with immediate effect.&nbsp;

GCC countries along with Egypt had blocked its airspace to Qatari planes and sealed their borders and port. Qatari citizens were also expelled from various GCC countries.

The GCC countries had put forward a list of 13 demands to Qatar to fulfil at the start of the standoff including the closure of the famous Al Jazeera television and shutting of Turkish military base, however, Qatar has not publicly bowed to any of the demands.

Just hours after the historic embrace between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Qatar's emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Saudi Arabia said it had reestablished full ties with Qatar.

Just hours after the historic embrace between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Qatar's emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Saudi Arabia said it had reestablished full ties with Qatar. "What happened today is... the turning of the page on all points of difference and a full return of diplomatic relations," Prince Faisal bin Farhan at the Gulf Cooperation Council(GCC) summit at al-Ula in Saudi Arabia. Also Read: Why Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017 Leaders of the six-member GCC signed two documents and a final communique as it sought to restore ties with Qatar. The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt had taken part in a three and a half year blockade of Qatar accusing it of siding with radical forces in the region, an allegation it vehemently denied. Qatar's closeness with Iran also angered GCC. However on Tuesday, the Gulf leaders signed the "solidarity and stability" deal bringing Qatar back into its economic fold. "The Al-Ula Declaration "affirms our Gulf, Arab and Islamic solidarity and stability," Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said. US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner attended the signing in Al-Ula signifying the influence of the US government in latest peace moves. Amid the new friendship wave, Kuwait said an agreement had been reached to open all borders between Saudi and Qatar with immediate effect. GCC countries along with Egypt had blocked its airspace to Qatari planes and sealed their borders and port. Qatari citizens were also expelled from various GCC countries. The GCC countries had put forward a list of 13 demands to Qatar to fulfil at the start of the standoff including the closure of the famous Al Jazeera television and shutting of Turkish military base, however, Qatar has not publicly bowed to any of the demands.

After royal embrace, Saudi Arabia restores full ties with Qatar

The Qatar crisis began in June 2017 when <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/in-historic-turn-saudi-crown-prince-mohammed-bin-salman-embraces-qatar-emir-354655">Saudi Arabia </a>broke ties with Qatar and in a matter of hours, six more countries followed suit. It was the biggest diplomatic crisis in the region since the Gulf War of 1991.

Saudi Arabia and its allies - Egypt, UAE, Bahrain had announced they would cut diplomatic ties with Qatar a neighbour who wasn't getting along with Saudi Arabia.

Qatar's independent and ambitious foreign policy triggered the fight. It was making moves to step out of the shadow of Saudi Arabia, then the Muslim Brotherhood began to gain ground in Egypt.&nbsp;In 2011, Qatar endorsed it, however, Saudi Arabia did not like the decision.

Riyadh saw the Muslim Brotherhood as a threat to regional stability. It felt their success in Egypt might motivate underground brotherhoods in other countries and challenge the authority of the Kingdoms of the Gulf.

But Qatar disagreed and deepened its engagement with the Muslim Brotherhood. The second flashpoint was Hamas - the Palestinian militant group. Qatar allowed Hamas to operate from its soil even as Saudi Arabia declared it a terrorist organisation.

The third major point of difference was Iran. Qatar supported Iran which the Saudis view as their arch enemy. In 2017, the disagreements came to a head. Saudi Arabia and its allies announced blockade in Qatar cutting diplomatic ties as air, land and sea travel was suspended.

Qatar was given ten days to meet thirteen sweeping demands. Qatar made no major concessions as it managed to tide the wave due to its gas-fuelled wealth.

However, the initial days were a struggle as store shelves went dry and air traffic came to a halt. Qatar arranged new shipping routes to offset the closure of the border with Saudi Arabia.

Cash from Qatar's sovereign wealth fund was deployed to shore up local banks and throughout the negotiations, the Qatari government stuck to its guns. It refused to outsource its foreign policy.

The rift ended up fracturing the Arab world causing real damage to the Gulf as trade and commerce fell apart in the region. Thousands of people had to rush back to their homes overnight to return to Qatar.

Some families were unable to see their relatives on the other side of the divide.

"What’s behind this crisis, of course is Qatar's sovereignty and independence to put it very simply. It is about our foreign policy and about outsourcing our foreign policy so that decisions are not made in Qatar and that is something that will never be acceptable," Sheikh Saif bin Ahmad al-Thani, Qatar's spokesman said.

The Qatar crisis began in June 2017 when Saudi Arabia broke ties with Qatar and in a matter of hours, six more countries followed suit. It was the biggest diplomatic crisis in the region since the Gulf War of 1991.

The Qatar crisis began in June 2017 when Saudi Arabia broke ties with Qatar and in a matter of hours, six more countries followed suit. It was the biggest diplomatic crisis in the region since the Gulf War of 1991. Saudi Arabia and its allies - Egypt, UAE, Bahrain had announced they would cut diplomatic ties with Qatar a neighbour who wasn't getting along with Saudi Arabia. Qatar's independent and ambitious foreign policy triggered the fight. It was making moves to step out of the shadow of Saudi Arabia, then the Muslim Brotherhood began to gain ground in Egypt. In 2011, Qatar endorsed it, however, Saudi Arabia did not like the decision. Riyadh saw the Muslim Brotherhood as a threat to regional stability. It felt their success in Egypt might motivate underground brotherhoods in other countries and challenge the authority of the Kingdoms of the Gulf. But Qatar disagreed and deepened its engagement with the Muslim Brotherhood. The second flashpoint was Hamas - the Palestinian militant group. Qatar allowed Hamas to operate from its soil even as Saudi Arabia declared it a terrorist organisation. The third major point of difference was Iran. Qatar supported Iran which the Saudis view as their arch enemy. In 2017, the disagreements came to a head. Saudi Arabia and its allies announced blockade in Qatar cutting diplomatic ties as air, land and sea travel was suspended. Qatar was given ten days to meet thirteen sweeping demands. Qatar made no major concessions as it managed to tide the wave due to its gas-fuelled wealth. However, the initial days were a struggle as store shelves went dry and air traffic came to a halt. Qatar arranged new shipping routes to offset the closure of the border with Saudi Arabia. Cash from Qatar's sovereign wealth fund was deployed to shore up local banks and throughout the negotiations, the Qatari government stuck to its guns. It refused to outsource its foreign policy. The rift ended up fracturing the Arab world causing real damage to the Gulf as trade and commerce fell apart in the region. Thousands of people had to rush back to their homes overnight to return to Qatar. Some families were unable to see their relatives on the other side of the divide. "What’s behind this crisis, of course is Qatar's sovereignty and independence to put it very simply. It is about our foreign policy and about outsourcing our foreign policy so that decisions are not made in Qatar and that is something that will never be acceptable," Sheikh Saif bin Ahmad al-Thani, Qatar's spokesman said.

Why Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has indicated that dispute between Gulf countries and Qatar could end after "significant progress in the last few days".

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/wion-fineprint-kuwait-qatar-flag-movement-on-resolving-gulf-row-347575/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The Saudi foreign minister said the peace moves have been possible due to "strong support from President Trump".

United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt had imposed large scale embargo against Qatar three years ago accusing the country of terrorism which it denies.

"We hope this progress can lead to a final agreement which looks within reach and I can say I am somewhat optimistic that we are close to finalising an agreement between all the nations in the dispute," Prince Faisal said.

Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries had closed its airspace to Qatar's planes and sealed borders while imposing sanctions against the country. Prince Faisal said the border talks were continuing as the Gulf countries look to resolve the dispute.

Qatar Airways aircraft fly over Iran which is Saudi Arabia's arch-rival in the region. US national security advisor Robert O'Brien had said last month that allowing Qatar planes to fly over Saudi Arabia through an "air bridge" was a priority of the outgoing Trump administration. &nbsp;

The peace overtures were started by Jared <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/donald-trumps-senior-aide-jared-kushner-headed-to-saudi-arabia-qatar-346545">Kushner</a>, President's Trump's son-in-law who is also his adviser and his team who met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to try to persuade Gulf Cooperation Council countries to end the blockade of Qatar amid US calls to push for Saudi Arabia and Qatar to normalise ties.

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has indicated that dispute between Gulf countries and Qatar could end after "significant progress in the last few days".

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has indicated that dispute between Gulf countries and Qatar could end after "significant progress in the last few days". Watch: The Saudi foreign minister said the peace moves have been possible due to "strong support from President Trump". United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt had imposed large scale embargo against Qatar three years ago accusing the country of terrorism which it denies. "We hope this progress can lead to a final agreement which looks within reach and I can say I am somewhat optimistic that we are close to finalising an agreement between all the nations in the dispute," Prince Faisal said. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries had closed its airspace to Qatar's planes and sealed borders while imposing sanctions against the country. Prince Faisal said the border talks were continuing as the Gulf countries look to resolve the dispute. Qatar Airways aircraft fly over Iran which is Saudi Arabia's arch-rival in the region. US national security advisor Robert O'Brien had said last month that allowing Qatar planes to fly over Saudi Arabia through an "air bridge" was a priority of the outgoing Trump administration. The peace overtures were started by Jared Kushner, President's Trump's son-in-law who is also his adviser and his team who met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to try to persuade Gulf Cooperation Council countries to end the blockade of Qatar amid US calls to push for Saudi Arabia and Qatar to normalise ties.

'Strong support from President Trump': Saudi Arabia says final agreement with Qatar 'within reach'

Saudi Arabia and its allies said early Monday they had decided to extend by 48 hours the deadline for Qatar to accept their list of demands to lift a de facto blockade.

With the deadline expiring at midnight Sunday, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt agreed to give Doha an extension to respond positively to their demands.

The move came after a request by the Kuwaiti emir who is acting as mediator in the Gulf crisis, according to a joint statement issued by the official Saudi SPA news agency.

The Kuwaiti government had requested the extension following Qatar&#39;s announcement that it was due to hand over its response to the emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, on Monday.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt announced on June 5 they were severing ties with their Gulf neighbour, sparking the worst diplomatic crisis to hit the region in decades.

They accused Doha of supporting extremism and of being too close to regional arch-rival Iran, which Qatar has strongly denied.

On June 22 they presented a list of 13 demands and gave Doha 10 days to comply.

Riyadh&#39;s demands include ending Doha&#39;s support for the Muslim Brotherhood, the closure of Al-Jazeera television, a downgrade of diplomatic ties with Iran and the shutdown of a Turkish military base in the emirate.

The four countries indicated in their statement that they would study and evaluate Qatar&#39;s response before delivering their own reply to Kuwait.

Doha has so far indicated that it rejects the demands.

&quot;The list of demands is made to be rejected,&quot; Qatar&#39;s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Saturday in Rome.

&quot;The state of Qatar... is rejecting it as a principle,&quot; he said, adding: &quot;We are willing to engage in providing the proper conditions for further dialogue.&quot;

On June 22, Qatar was?presented with a list of 13 demands and was given 10 days to comply

Saudi Arabia and its allies said early Monday they had decided to extend by 48 hours the deadline for Qatar to accept their list of demands to lift a de facto blockade. With the deadline expiring at midnight Sunday, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt agreed to give Doha an extension to respond positively to their demands. The move came after a request by the Kuwaiti emir who is acting as mediator in the Gulf crisis, according to a joint statement issued by the official Saudi SPA news agency. The Kuwaiti government had requested the extension following Qatar's announcement that it was due to hand over its response to the emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, on Monday. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt announced on June 5 they were severing ties with their Gulf neighbour, sparking the worst diplomatic crisis to hit the region in decades. They accused Doha of supporting extremism and of being too close to regional arch-rival Iran, which Qatar has strongly denied. On June 22 they presented a list of 13 demands and gave Doha 10 days to comply. Riyadh's demands include ending Doha's support for the Muslim Brotherhood, the closure of Al-Jazeera television, a downgrade of diplomatic ties with Iran and the shutdown of a Turkish military base in the emirate. The four countries indicated in their statement that they would study and evaluate Qatar's response before delivering their own reply to Kuwait. Doha has so far indicated that it rejects the demands. "The list of demands is made to be rejected," Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Saturday in Rome. "The state of Qatar... is rejecting it as a principle," he said, adding: "We are willing to engage in providing the proper conditions for further dialogue."

Saudi Arabia and allies extend Qatar deadline by 48 hours

Qatar said on Friday it is grateful for the food supplied by Turkey amid the ongoing row with Gulf Countries.

Qatar&rsquo;s envoy to Turkey Salem bin Mubarak al-Shafi told the Hurriyet Daily News that the two countries have established an economic commission for provision of the necessary food and other supplies.

&quot;Turkey has opened its market to us. We are grateful for this,&quot; Salem bin Mubarak al-Shafi said in the interview on June 15.

Al Shafi expressed his country&rsquo;s appreciation for &quot;the Turkish government&rsquo;s enormous support in these difficult days.&quot;

&ldquo;Turkey has become very helpful to us to this end. Some big companies of Qatar have come here and purchased mainly dairy products, because we had been procuring these from Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia decided to impose a siege on us and it is shameful. Qatar is not a small country and it can get its needs from other markets. But they have broken the social bonds between our countries through this siege,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;

Saudi Arabia-led Arab and Gulf countries imposed tough sanctions on Qatar last week, alleging it was supporting terrorist organisations.&nbsp;

Saudi Arabia&rsquo;s decision to close the land border with Qatar has caused shortages of food and some dairy products.&nbsp;

Turkey has become one of few countries who have rushed help to Qatar.&nbsp;

Turkey&#39;s President Tayyip Erdogan has said that Ankara would not abandon its regional ally.&nbsp;

&ldquo;The stance that President Erdogan has taken is a very honourable one. In this way, we have learned who our real friend is,&rdquo; al-Shafi was quoted as saying in the interview. 
&nbsp;

 
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Qatar?s envoy to Turkey Salem bin Mubarak al-Shafi disclosed that the two countries have established an economic commission for provision of the necessary food supplies

Qatar said on Friday it is grateful for the food supplied by Turkey amid the ongoing row with Gulf Countries. Qatar’s envoy to Turkey Salem bin Mubarak al-Shafi told the Hurriyet Daily News that the two countries have established an economic commission for provision of the necessary food and other supplies. "Turkey has opened its market to us. We are grateful for this," Salem bin Mubarak al-Shafi said in the interview on June 15. Al Shafi expressed his country’s appreciation for "the Turkish government’s enormous support in these difficult days." “Turkey has become very helpful to us to this end. Some big companies of Qatar have come here and purchased mainly dairy products, because we had been procuring these from Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia decided to impose a siege on us and it is shameful. Qatar is not a small country and it can get its needs from other markets. But they have broken the social bonds between our countries through this siege,” he said. Saudi Arabia-led Arab and Gulf countries imposed tough sanctions on Qatar last week, alleging it was supporting terrorist organisations. Saudi Arabia’s decision to close the land border with Qatar has caused shortages of food and some dairy products. Turkey has become one of few countries who have rushed help to Qatar. Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan has said that Ankara would not abandon its regional ally. “The stance that President Erdogan has taken is a very honourable one. In this way, we have learned who our real friend is,” al-Shafi was quoted as saying in the interview.

Qatar 'grateful' as Turkey supplies food amid blockade

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After royal embrace, Saudi Arabia restores full ties with Qatar

Why Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017

'Strong support from President Trump': Saudi Arabia says final agreement with Qatar 'within reach'

Saudi Arabia and allies extend Qatar deadline by 48 hours

Qatar 'grateful' as Turkey supplies food amid blockade