UAE's move of forming separate group with Saudi could worsen Gulf crisis

The United Arab Emirates today announced it has formed a new economic and partnership group with Saudi Arabia, separate from the Gulf Cooperation Council, a move that could undermine the council amid a diplomatic crisis with member state Qatar.

The Emirati Foreign Ministry announcement, just hours ahead of a GCC meeting in Kuwait, said the new "joint cooperation committee" was approved by the UAE's ruler and president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan.

Saudi Arabia did not immediately report on the new partnership.

It wasn't immediately clear how the development could affect the six-member GCC meeting, which is expected to focus on the Qatar issue. Half of the GCC members are boycotting Doha in a dispute that's cleaved the Arabian Peninsula.

The Emirati ministry said the new "committee is assigned to cooperate and coordinate between the UAE and Saudi Arabia in all military, political, economic, trade and cultural fields, as well as others, in the interest of the two countries."

The UAE and Saudi Arabia have cultivated even-closer ties in recent years. Emirati troops are deeply involved in the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
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Chabahar: China hopes port launch conducive to regional peace

China today hoped that the launch of the strategic Chabahar port in Iran which enables India to directly trade with Afghanistan besides rivalling Pakistan's Gwadar port is conducive to regional peace and stability.

The first phase of the Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman coast was inaugurated yesterday by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, opening a new strategic route connecting Iran, India and Afghanistan while bypassing Pakistan, and reflecting growing convergence of interests among the three countries.

The port in Iran's Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich nation's southern coast is easily accessible from India's western coast and is increasingly seen as a counter to Pakistan's Gwadar port, which is being developed with Chinese investment and is located around 80 kms from Chabahar.

Asked how China views the launch of the project, considering that China is investing heavily in Gwadar as part of the USD 50 billion ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang declined to comment on it directly.

"As for the (Chabahar) port, I want to give you a principled answer. We welcome the development of friendly relations between the regional countries and conduct mutually beneficial cooperation," he said.
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Bahrain seeks Qatar's suspension from GCC

Bahrain's foreign minister on Monday suggested suspending Qatar's Gulf Cooperation Council membership until it accepts the demands of its Arab adversaries in the region's worst crisis in years.

"The correct step to preserve the GCC would be to freeze Qatar's membership until it sees reason and accepts the demands of our countries. If not, we will be fine with it leaving the GCC," Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa said on Twitter.

Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt on June 5 severed ties with Qatar over accusations of supporting extremism and being too close to Shiite rival Iran, charges Doha has denied.

Founded in 1981, the GCC is a political and economic union that includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, as well as Oman and Kuwait.

Experts have warned that the nearly five-month-long diplomatic crisis could cause the six-nation bloc's demise.

Saudi Arabia and its allies in June issued Qatar with a list of demands including shutting down Doha-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera, curbing relations with Iran and closing a Turkish military base in the emirate.

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Tropical Storm Nate leaves 28 dead; bears down on Mexico and US

Tropical Storm Nate gained strength as it barrelled toward popular Mexican beach resorts and ultimately the US Gulf coast after dumping heavy rains on Central America that left at least 28 people dead.

Nate, which currently has winds of 95 kilometres (60 miles) per hour, is forecast to reach hurricane strength by the time it makes landfall in the United States late today or early tomorrow, on the north coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

New Orleans, which was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, leaving hundreds dead, and other cities on the US Gulf coast were under hurricane watch.

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned of possible "hurricane conditions" by last night on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, home to Cancun and other Caribbean resorts.

Governor Carlos Joaquin said the storm was expected to pass just east of the peninsula, but warned that torrential rains could trigger an emergency anyway.

Authorities cancelled school in seven coastal towns and declared an orange alert for the northern half of Quintana Roo state.

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Arab states' sanctions boost food prices, hurt real estate in Qatar in July

Sanctions imposed by other Arab states are continuing to push up food prices in Qatar while hurting the real estate market, but not to the point of damaging the economy severely, according to inflation figures released by the government on Tuesday.

The annual inflation rate fell back sharply to 0.2 per cent in July. It had spiked to 0.8 per cent in June from 0.1 per cent in May after Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing it of supporting terrorism, which Doha denies.

By closing Qatar's land border with Saudi Arabia and disrupting maritime shipping routes, the sanctions slashed Qatari imports by more than a third in June, pushed up prices of some basic goods and hurt business sentiment in Doha.

There were fresh signs of that damage in the July inflation numbers. Food and beverage prices climbed 4.5 per cent from a year earlier - their fastest rate of increase since at least 2014, and accelerating from a rise of 2.4 per cent in June.
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PM revealed his Dubai job in 2013 election papers: Nawaz Sharif's lawyer

Denying that his client had concealed his employment in Dubai based company, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's lawyer, Khawaja Harris has submitted a written reply in the Supreme Court on Saturday, stating that Prime Minister mentioned his Dubai job and Iqama in nomination papers of 2013.

The written reply has details of employment of Prime Minister Sharif at Capital FZE, Dubai-based company and had received an iqama (work permit) from the Gulf. The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) had raised the question after unearthing an offshore company related to the Prime Minister during investigations into the money laundering allegations against the Sharif family during the Panamagate hearings, the Dawn reported.

A three-member bench of the Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday concluded the entire hearings and reserved the judgment in the Panamagate case in which Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family are accused of amassing offshore assets. The date of the judgment is yet to be announced and if convicted, Prime Minister Sharif can face disqualification from politics.

"The allegation that the employment with Capital FZE was concealed by the prime minister is totally false," reads the reply.

A copy of the premier's passport bearing the work permit was annexed to the 2013 nomination papers, along with a document of his employment at the company, according to the reply.
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Qatar-Gulf crisis: The worst is behind us, says US

Progress has been made towards resolving the crisis between Qatar and its Gulf neighbours after senior US officials met leading players in the standoff, the State Department has said.

"I would characterise the mood and approach as hopeful, which believes that the worst is behind us," spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters on Tuesday.

Earlier, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, whose government accused Qatar of sponsoring extremist groups and had closed its border.

Tillerson and US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis have been working the telephones attempting to de-escalate the crisis between Riyadh and Qatar, which hosts a huge US airbase.

Nauert refused to say whether Washington regards Qatar as a sponsor of terror or whether the closure of the border and ban on Qatari flights in Saudi airspace amount to a "blockade."

"Let's keep in mind that everyone has agreed or these parties are working toward an agreement on combating terrorism, and that is the main focus," she said.

"And let's not get bogged down in all the details about who's calling what when. This is trending in a positive direction. And let's stay focused on that so that we can continue to fight the war on terror."

Earlier, appearing alongside Tillerson - who last week had urged that the "blockade" be eased - Jubeir had insisted: "It's not a blockade."
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