"Qatar will realise that this is a new state of affairs and isolation can last years".
On June 5, Saudi Arabia and its allies cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar, pulling their ambassadors from the gas-rich emirate and giving its citizens a two-week deadline to leave their territory. The UAE minister accused the nation of "supporting jihadists" and insisted that to broker peace, Qatar must end its support "to extremist Islamists".
"They have built a sophisticated podium for jihadism and Islamic extremism", he said.
"We have a back-up plan which depends mainly on Turkey, Kuwait and Oman", he said. "France, Britain, US or Germany could monitor because they have the diplomatic clout and technical know-how", Gargash said.
The Gulf political crisis has also affected countries outside the region.
The four countries accuse Qatar of fomenting instability in the Middle East, funding terrorism and cosying up to Shi'te power Iran, accusations that Qatar denies.
While several Arab, African, and Muslim countries have sided with Saudi Arabia, other allies of Gulf countries such as Morocco and Turkey opted for neutrality.
Ties between Saudi Arabia and Turkey had become strained under King Salman's predecessor over Turkey's support for the Muslim Brotherhood during the height of Arab Spring protests.
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"Qatar's exposure to the blockade countries - the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain - is limited".
Qatar's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday that the first joint drills took place on Sunday at the Tariq bin Ziyad military camp in Doha.
There is now tension between Qatar and its immediate neighbours, led by Saudi Arabia, who say Qatar is turning a blind eye to terrorism financiers.
Qatar's defence ministry said the joint exercises had been previously planned, though there is widespread agreement among officials and observers in the region that the fast-tracked deployment was aimed at deterring any military action against Doha.
The country has also been shipping dairy and poultry products to Doha, to make up for the halt in Saudi Arabian imports.
Bloomberg reports that the $12-billion deal was signed by Qatari defence minister Khalid Al-Attiyah and his USA counterpart, Jim Mattis in Washington on Wednesday. Qatar has also invested heavily in Turkey.
The association was established after the failed coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016.
The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are widely known to be aiding an assortment of Takfiri militants fighting to topple the Syrian government. Turkish officials have previously said there will eventually be up to 3,000 troops at the base, primarily for training exercises and to enhance GCC security.
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