The Amir, H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, will meet US President Donald Trump next month, said the White House, as Qatar continues to endure the blockade, Al Jazeera has reported.
The bilateral meeting will be the first between the leaders since Trump hosted Sheikh Tamim at the White House in April last year.
The Amir will meet Trump in Washington on July 9 for talks on regional politics, security and counter-terrorism cooperation, according to the announcement on Friday, which came amid a US effort to build pressure on Iran. “The visit will build on the longstanding partnership between the US and Qatar and further strengthen our already substantial economic and security ties,” the White House said.
Washington has sought to keep up relations with Qatar, which has maintained cordial relations with Iran even as other Gulf states led by Saudi Arabia have cooperated with Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran.
For two years, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, have barred Qatari flights from their airports and airspace, banned most Qatari visitors, cut trade and shipping links and closed their borders. Washington was less than enthusiastic about the embargo on Qatar, which hosts two US military bases and the forward headquarters of the US Central Command that oversees the Pentagon’s operations across the Middle East.
Qatar is also slated to take part in the June 25-26 Bahrain conference on the Trump administration’s Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative.