Gulf Officials Discuss ‘Cooperation’ ahead of Summit

Gulf Officials Discuss ‘Cooperation’ ahead of Summit

Top Gulf Arab officials have held a virtual meeting to bolster "cooperation" ahead of a summit next month amid efforts to end a rift between a Saudi-led alliance and Qatar.

The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait took part in the meeting hosted by Manama, while Qatar was represented by its minister of state for foreign affairs.

The participation of Qatar's foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, would have been seen as another sign towards ending the diplomatic dispute.

Saudi Arabia led its allies the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt to cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, saying it was too close to Iran and funding radical Islamist movements -- charges Doha staunchly denies.

After severing ties, the countries issued a list of 13 demands for Qatar, including that it shut down its broadcaster Al Jazeera.

The six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) addressed on Sunday "suggestions on supporting and strengthening joint Gulf cooperation in various political, economic and social aspects", according to a statement by Kuwait's foreign ministry.

This comes after Manama on Wednesday called for an "end to regional disputes", softening its rhetoric surrounding the Gulf crisis.

Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdellatif al-Zayani expressed confidence