Mediation, a key instrument of Qatari diplomacy
Photo dated November 2014, men chat by the sea overlooking the skyline of Doha.
© AP
Text by: Houda Ibrahim Follow
4 mins
For several years, Qatar has sought to become an essential mediator not only in the Middle East, but also internationally.
Sudan, Yemen, Lebanon, then between Washington and Tehran, but also between Washington and Kabul… The small gas emirate in the Gulf is making enormous efforts to impose itself in the management of conflicts and taking care to increase its influence.
For several months, Doha has also been involved as a mediator in Chad to initiate a national dialogue, making mediation a key instrument of Qatar's foreign policy.
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Qatar is trying to "
reinvent its position as a mediator before 2011
, "
said David Rigoulet-Rose, researcher at the Institute for International and Strategic Relations (Iris), specialist in Qatar.
This country, he recalls, had "
somewhat disproportionate ambitions during the Arab Spring: through the Islamist movement, Qatar played a proactive role as in Libya
".
Ambitions that have earned him a decline and the boycott of the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) supported by Egypt.
Accused of aiding terrorism, Qatar was then excluded from this body in 2017.
► To read: Qatar: the role of Doha in the negotiations between the United States and the Taliban
This boycott, which reduced its room for maneuver, finally pushed Qatar "
to resume the role that was its own and to reinvent itself
", specifies the Iris researcher who indicates that the small gas emirate has benefited from a series of “
rather favorable circumstances
” which allowed him to present himself as a “
go between, (an intermediary), in particular between Americans and the Taliban or even virtually between Iran and the United States
”, he affirms.
A role drawn with the great powers
With the proliferation of its mediations, Doha is showing great availability and is seeking to impose itself on the regional geopolitical chessboard.
A role hailed by the current UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres who considers the Qatari capital as a "
platform for global dialogue
".
It is also for the sake of international acceptability that Qatar has developed know-how.
First with the very present former Foreign Minister Hamad Ben Jassim, but also with the resources available to the state.
The openness of the emirate vis-à-vis opposition movements - including Islamist movements - has given it "
the necessary tools to initiate mediations, which have often succeeded
", specifies political scientist Hasni Abidi.
Another important point on which the director of the Center for Studies and Research on the Arab and Mediterranean World in Geneva insists: "
Qatar's desire to increase its influence can only be done with the blessing of the great powers
", and especially from the United States,
as was the case in Afghanistan
.
This is sometimes also done in concert with other European powers: "
It is difficult to imagine Qatar playing the mediator in certain conflicts which concern regional security without the agreement and the will of the great powers
", concludes Hasni Abidi .
Qatar and Chad a not so easy relationship
Between Qatar and Chad
, relations have not always been easy.
During the Gulf crisis in 2017, their respective embassies were closed.
The Gulf Coordination Council (GCC), excluded Qatar and sided with Saudi Arabia.
Qatar welcomed Chadian rebels on its territory, including Timane Erdimi, the tenor of this politico-military opposition who became president of the Rally of Forces for Change.
But the coming to power of the new President of the Transitional Military Council, Mahamat Idriss Deby, according to political scientist Hasni Abidi, constituted "
a turning point in relations between the two countries
".
During a visit to Doha in September 2021, it was the son of Idriss Deby who officially requested the mediation of the Emir of Qatar with a view to national reconciliation.
Mediation at the initiative of Chad
Deby was then "
aware of the influence of Qatar on part of the political-military opposition which resides in Doha
", specifies the political scientist Abiddi.
Also aware of the "
efforts previously made by Qatari diplomacy to resolve several conflicts in the region, especially in Sudan, (he, editor's note) makes his request
".
Doha accepted and a committee was formed to prepare the current pre-dialogue.
However, this Qatari mediation remains problematic for Paris, which is following it closely, according to Hasni Abidi, "
Doha has good relations with Turkey - which is eyeing this region close to Libya - and with Russia, which is also seeking to consolidate its presence in this region
”.
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