Ending 3-year rift, UAE re-opens borders with Qatar from today
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The AlUla Accord was signed at the 41st annual gathering of the GCC ending the three-year rift between Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt (Image: SPA)
The United Arab Emirates is reopening its borders and airspace to Qatar starting Saturday January 9th, as reported by theUAE's official news agency WAM.
Khalid Abdullah Belhoul, undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, announced on Fridaythat the country will end all embargoing measures taken against Qatar since June 5, 2017.
As trade, travel and transportation ties with Qatar are being resolved,Belhoulstated that the Al-Ula Declaration and the associated permanent agreement of GCC solidarity bolsters the cohesion of the GCC, Arab and Islamic unity.
The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) also announced that all scheduled and unscheduled flights between the two countrieswill resume in coordination with the civil aviation authorities and national carriers in the UAE.
"We realise that some issues are easier to fix. Some will take longer,"saidAnwar Gargash, the UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, on Thursday adding that he expects that the GCC "will go back to its full vitality" on the diplomatic front.
While Saudi Arabia and UAE announced their move, Bahrain and Egypt are yet to announce the complete restoration with neighbouring Qatar which was agreed during the 41st GCC Summit.