In a statement issued today, the council revealed that the decision to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar was the result of Qatar's insistence on going ahead with its policy of interfering in Bahrain's internal affairs, escalation, media provocation, support of terror groups and their activities and providing the needed funding sources for Iran-related groups to carry out acts of sabotage and wreak chaos which contravenes all global conventions and covenants and is in breach with the GCC and Arab fundamentals, values and traditions.
Also on Wednesday, Anwar Gargash, the foreign minister of the UAE, said "there's nothing to negotiate" with Qatar, signaling Arab countries trying to isolate Doha will not back down.
Momani said in a statement that the decision was made to ensure regional stability, coordinate the policies of Arab countries and "end the crises in our region".
Trump's harsh words for the Qataris were a departure from his rhetoric during his visit to Saudi Arabia, when he met with Qatar's emir and called the relationship "extremely good".
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, the internationally recognized government in Yemen and the leadership in Eastern Libya have all suspended diplomatic and commercial links to Qatar, including air travel.
Trump's new tone echoed that of his secretaries of Defense and State, who emphasized Tuesday the need for Gulf unity and the importance of the USA partnership with Qatar, home to the Al Udeid Air Base, the main regional center for air missions against ISIS. It was especially galling to Qatar's neighbors that precisely in the period following the September 11 attacks, when governments in the region were seeking to suppress the extremist Islamist tendencies that underpinned the terrorists' ideologies, Qatar continued to help nurture Islamist movements.
In a call with Sheikh Sabah on Monday, Qatari leader Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani had agreed to put off a speech to the nation in order to give mediation a chance.
Saudi Arabia meanwhile said it will revoke Qatar Airways' operating licences and close the airline's offices in the kingdom within 48 hours.
Trump's Latest Move Sets Oil Prices Down
USA crude production has also continued to increase, rising to 9.34 million bbl/d, up almost 500,000 bbl/d from a year-ago. If that happened, the US could surpass Saudi Arabia as the world's No. 2 oil producer.
Trump said at the meeting.
"We don't see that he's pointing fingers at Qatar", Al Thani said. As the forward headquarters of US Central Command, it is seen as crucial in the US-led campaign against the Islamic State group.
Jubeir added that Qatar was undermining the Palestinian Authority and Egypt in its support of Hamas and the Muslim brotherhood.
A Pentagon spokesman said the crisis has had "no impact on our operations in Qatar or with regards to airspace permission around it".
Football's governing body Fifa said it remained in regular contact with Qatar, which will host the 2022 World Cup.
In announcing it was cutting ties, Riyadh accused Doha of harbouring "terrorist and sectarian groups that aim to destabilise the region including the Muslim Brotherhood, Daesh (IS) and Al-Qaeda".
But Qatar has also always been accused by its Gulf neighbours and Egypt of supporting extremist groups. As far as India is concerned, New Delhi has done well to state this is an internal matter for the Gulf countries to handle. But its independent foreign policy has led to various tensions with its neighbors.
Fellow Gulf states are also reported to have been angered by a huge ransom paid by Doha earlier this year to secure the release of a hunting party, which included members of the Qatari royal family, kidnapped in southern Iraq.
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