Qatar, Egypt hold 1st meeting since reconciliation

By Serdar Bitmez

DOHA, Qatar (AA) - Egyptian and Qatari officials met in Kuwait on Tuesday for the first time to discuss how to implement their recent reconciliation deal, the Gulf nation announced.

Delegations from the two countries worked to hash out the joint mechanisms and procedures to implement the Jan. 5 Gulf reconciliation agreement, that ended a rift of more than three years, according to a statement by the Qatari Foreign Ministry.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt agreed in January at a summit in the Saudi city of Al Ula to restore diplomatic, trade, and travel ties with Qatar, which were cut in 2017 for "supporting terrorism."

Qatar had denied the accusation and rejected the conditions for ending the blockade.

The statement added that the two sides "welcomed the measures taken by both countries after signing the Al-Ula statement as a step on the path of building confidence between the two brotherly countries."

They also discussed, "the necessary means and measures to be taken in order to enhance the march of joint work and bilateral relations between the two countries, and to achieve the aspirations of their peoples in terms of security, stability and development."

The delegations thanked Kuwait for hosting the meeting.