The American Newsweek magazine quoted Qatar's ambassador to the United States, Meshaal bin Hamad Al Thani, as saying that his country remains "committed" to the Arab peace plan announced 18 years ago and links normalization of relations with Israel to ending the occupation of Palestinian lands.

The magazine mentioned that this announcement comes as the pace of normalization in the Gulf with Israel accelerates, as both the UAE and Bahrain announced the normalization of their relations with Tel Aviv, thanks to the mediation of President Donald Trump's administration, which also called on the rest of the Arab and Islamic countries to follow the example of the two Gulf states.

The Arab principle, which was endorsed by the Arab League at the Beirut summit in 2002, stipulates establishing relations between Israel and the Arab world in return for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied territories, which include both the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, parts of Syria and Lebanon, and the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The Qatari official said - in an interview singled out to the magazine - that Doha "remains committed to a just settlement of the Palestinian issue on the basis of the Arab Peace Initiative, and a two-state solution to achieve security and stability in the region."

"Both Qatar and the United States are aware that a peaceful settlement between Israel and the Palestinians is important for the stability of the Middle East region, and we are continuing to play an active role in trying to reach a peaceful solution," he added.

And he added, "Qatar has always called for the use of mediation and de-escalation as a means of resolving the conflict ... and over the past two decades, Doha has sought to achieve stability and peace in the region and beyond, not only in Gaza but also in Lebanon, Afghanistan and Sudan."

The Qatari official stressed the "important" role that his country continues to play in peacemaking, especially in the besieged Gaza Strip, saying, "Qatar has provided Palestine and the Gaza Strip vital support to ensure the peaceful and stable development of the Strip and its citizens through multiple aid programs."

On the other hand, Meshaal bin Hamad Al Thani considered that the quadriplegic blockade imposed by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt on Qatar since June 2017 has not deterred his country from its policies and alliances.

"The blockade is not only unjustified, but it was completely ineffective ... During these three years, we built stronger geopolitical alliances and grew our economic relations, especially with the United States," he added.

The Qatari ambassador also expressed his country's “gratitude” to the US government, which “worked with us over the past three years to try to end the illegal blockade of Qatar.”

"We appreciate President Trump's recent calls to Saudi Arabia and the UAE to end their air blockade on Qatar. Our American allies understand that this blockade is only counter-productive and only leads to more instability in the region," he added.

Pompeo (right) affirmed during the opening of the third strategic dialogue between the United States and Qatar in Washington that his country is seeking to "find a solution" to the Gulf crisis (Reuters)

End the crisis

Newsweek magazine confirms that President Trump's administration seeks to exploit the current context in light of the recent normalization agreements between the UAE, Bahrain and Israel, in order to end the "diplomatic crisis" that afflicts the Gulf Cooperation Council countries due to the blockade file.

Within this framework - according to the magazine - fall the recent statements of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who declared, during the opening of the third strategic dialogue between the United States and Qatar, that “to preserve our focus on this mission, and to close the door to the increasing Iranian interference, the time has come to find a solution to the Gulf dispute. ".

"The Trump administration is keen to resolve this dispute and reopen the air and land borders of Qatar that are currently closed by other Gulf states ... and I look forward to progress in this regard," he added.