LONDON: The presence of Turkey’s army in Qatar is an “element of instability in the region,” the UAE’s minister of state for foreign affairs said on Saturday.
“The Turkish military presence in the Arab Gulf is an emergency… It reinforces polarization, and it does not take into account the sovereignty of states and the interests of the Gulf countries and its peoples,” Anwar Gargash tweeted.
Commenting on a statement made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his recent visit to Qatar, Gargash said that Turkey’s army is not working toward stability in the region as the President claimed.
“The statement of the Turkish President during his visit to Qatar, in which he indicates that his army is working toward the stability of all Gulf states, is inconsistent with Turkey’s regional role, and the evidence (for this) is numerous,” the minister said.
Gargash added that the statement is an attempt to divert attention away from the economic reasons for the president’s visit.
Erdogan visited Qatar on Wednesday and met with the country’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.