Both Qatar and Bahrain restored ties in April 2023 after a regional crisis in 2017.
Qatar has welcomed Bahrain’s ambassador to the country for the first time since the 2017 Gulf Cooperation Council crisis, marking another major step towards improving ties after a rift.
Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan Al Muraikhi received the letters of credentials of Bahrain’s new ambassador, Mohammed bin Ali Al Ghatam, the Doha Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
“[The] “The Deputy Foreign Minister wished the Ambassador every success in his mission and assured all possible support in advancing bilateral relations towards closer cooperation in various fields,” the statement said.
On June 12, Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa appointed Al Ghatam as “ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary” to head the Doha diplomatic mission in Manama.
On the same day, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani appointed Sultan Al Khater as Doha’s new ambassador to Manama, the country’s first such appointment since the regional conflict.
In 2017, Bahrain joined Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt in cutting ties with Qatar and imposing a total land, air and sea blockade on the country, sparking the region’s worst diplomatic crisis.
At the time, the Gang of Four accused Qatar of supporting terrorism, a claim Doha has always strongly denied, calling it “baseless”.
By 2021, the Gulf conflict was effectively ended with the signing of the Al-Ula Declaration at a GCC summit in Saudi Arabia.
However, relations between Qatar and Bahrain were only restored in April 2023, as a result of diplomats from both countries meeting in Saudi Arabia. This was after direct flights between Doha and Manama were resumed on May 25, 2023.
Other significant developments witnessed by the two countries since the resumption of bilateral ties include the revival of the common “Friendship Bridge” project, the construction of which had stalled during the blockade.
The bridge construction project emerged again during a meeting between Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa in Manama in November last year.
The issue also came up in discussions at the Qatar-Bahrain Follow-up Committee in Manama on February 20, with the two sides agreeing to reconstitute the project’s board of directors and “take the necessary steps” to implement it.
The project was first announced in 2008 with the aim of improving trade and travel between the GCC countries. The $3 billion project will link Bahrain with the northwest coast of Qatar, reducing travel times from five hours to 30 minutes.
