Bahraini minister to visit Turkey amid Gulf crisis

By Ugur Cil

ANKARA (AA) - Bahraini foreign minister will visit Turkey on Saturday amid a diplomatic row among Gulf states, Turkish Foreign Ministry announced on Friday.

Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa will be received by the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the statement said.

“The latest developments in the region will be discussed during the meetings with the visiting minister of foreign affairs of Bahrain,” the statement added.

On Wednesday, Turkey’s parliament ratified two deals on deploying troops to Qatar and training the Gulf nation's gendarmerie forces.

The deal to deploy Turkish troops in Qatar to improve the country's army and boost military cooperation was signed in April 2016 in the Qatari capital, Doha.

On Monday, five Arab countries -- Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Yemen -- cut ties with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism.

Qatar denied the accusations, calling the move "unjustified".

The escalation came two weeks after the website of Qatar’s official news agency was allegedly hacked by unknown individuals who reportedly published statements attributed to the country’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.

The incident triggered a diplomatic row between Qatar and its neighbors.