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18 May 2009 The Obama administration has
expressed discontent over warming ties between Iran
and the Persian Gulf emirate of Qatar, a report says.
Washington has secretly warned Qatari Emir Hamad bin
Khalifa Al-Thani that he would loose support of US
troops based in the country, if Doha insists on
getting close to Tehran officials, Debkafile reported,
citing sources in the US and the Middle East.
Debkafile, which is believed to be affiliated with
Israeli intelligence, added that the US has said it
would close its three military bases in the small Arab
state, if Doha insists on maintaining its close ties
to Tehran.
According to the report, White House officials have
told their counterparts in the Arab country that a US
troop withdrawal would leave Muscat defenseless in
case of a regional military conflict. Qatari
officials, however, may not necessarily share the same
view.
Qatar refused to follow on the footsteps of Washington
and its Arab allies in the region particularly over
the recent Israeli offensive on Gaza Strip which
killed over 1350 people and wounded thousands others
including a large number of women and children.
The US vetoed several anti-Israeli Resolutions in the
UN Security Council which called for the immediate end
of the Israeli military operations in the already
impoverished Palestinian coastal enclave.
The US showed its discontent by exempting Qatar from
the countries that Defense Secretary Robert Gates
visited on his recent regional tour, the report said.
Washington has also warned the Qatari emir to take all
possible measures to soften the anti-US tone of news
broadcasts aired on the country's al Jazeera TV
network, it added.
News of Washington's reaction to warming ties between
Iran and Qatar could indicate that the new US
administration's position on Iran is not all that
different to Bush era policies toward the country,
despite President Barack Obama's apparently contrary
tone on the issue.
While Obama says he is trying to reach out to Iran,
his administration has extended sanctions that were
imposed on the country during Bill Clinton's
presidential term.
It also levied fresh embargoes on six Iranian firms
over alleged links to Tehran's missile and nuclear
work last month.
In late April, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
told US lawmakers that the US was 'willing' to engage
diplomatically with Iran but at the same time
threatened Tehran with 'very tough, crippling
sanctions' if the desired results were not achieved.
EsinIslam.Com
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