Diplomatic accord is a sign of regional maturity

What the Arabic-language press is saying about the Riyadh Agreement, featuring Al Khaleej, Asharq Al Awsat and Al Bayan.

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Arabic News Digest After months of dissent, the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) met in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to reach an accord – the Riyadh Agreement – on the basis of which the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain would reinstate their ambassadors to Qatar.

In the Sharjah-based daily Al Khaleej, Abdulghaffar Hussein noted that “what has happened between Qatar on one side and the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain on the other, is something that might occur between siblings and the closest of friends at any time.

“What appears to be clear at the moment is that elements in the media helped fuel the discord [...] without thinking of the consequences of such acts”.

He said that some “strove to spread a culture of hatred in society and have led people to constant turmoil”adding that “considering recent differences of opinion between the UAE and Qatar, it seems as though instigators had purposefully sparked dissent as infiltrators who spoke in the name of religious authorities.”

In the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al Awsat, Tariq Al Hameed considered the challenges facing the GCC and remarked that “ a complicated page of the chapter of discord in the Gulf was turned, as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain decided to reinstate their ambassadors to Qatar after Doha agreed on the Riyadh Agreement and pledged to adhere to it”.

He pondered whether this marked the end of the Gulf’s problems.

“The GCC stands at a stage of political maturity and it is not alone. One might mention the latest British threat to withdraw from the European Union (EU) if their demands for reform of the immigration system within the Union are ignored. If such is the case for Europeans despite their political history, what can be said of the GCC?” he wrote.

“The EU previously faced a crisis, though economic, when a German official once declared that the Greeks cannot eat caviar and expect Germany to pay for it. If we compare controversies among GCC countries with those among EU countries, it is not a matter of caviar, but a matter of life and death.”

He added that the outcome of the Riyadh Summit was not the result of traditional mediation, but neither was it the product of emotion. “It is merely a rational process guided by the conviction that the GCC remains in a state of maturity and such requires patience, perseverance and wisdom...If the European Union itself is facing real challenges, how could the GCC remain untouched in the midst of a region riddled with conflicts, trespassing, divisions and existential challenges, that are quite far from the Greek caviar story?”

He concluded that “days and events will reflect the extent of Qatar’s commitment to the Riyadh Agreement”.

In the Dubai-based daily Al Bayan, Maisa Rashed Ghadeer wrote that the “Riyadh Summit and the Riyadh Agreement open a new page in the history of the GCC, one that will be the base for joint action, promoting a strong and cohesive entity, particularly in light of current circumstances in the region”.

She concluded that the expected role is not one for leaders and politicians to play, but for individuals. They need to understand the importance of this agreement and its obligations and address any gap that could otherwise cause or amplify conflicts, especially in social media, she said.

Translated by Carla Mirza

cmirza@thenational.ae