The Gulf Crisis: an Insight Into Kuwait’S Mediation Efforts
International Relations and Diplomacy, October 2018, Vol. 6, No. 10, 537-548 D doi: 10.17265/2328-2134/2018.10.002 D AV I D PUBLISHING The Gulf Crisis: An Insight Into Kuwait’s Mediation Efforts Abdulhadi Alajmi Kuwait University, State of Kuwait, Kuwait Mediation is an important peaceful means of resolving international disputes. In such cases, the mediator invites member states in dispute to roundtable negotiations to bring about a reconciliation. In the late GCC crisis between Qatar on one hand and Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt on the other, Kuwaiti mediation tries to bridge the gap and prevent escalation that might lead to military confrontation against Doha to force a change of regime. However, this mediation is always in danger of an elongated crisis that might worsen the situation and hinder the parties reaching a reconciliatory settlement of their dispute. This is a challenge that confronts the Kuwaiti mediator and jeopardizes the very existence of the GCC in case the Kuwaiti mediator fails to reach a settlement. The dispute went beyond a limited geographic one with Egypt joining the boycott and the symbolic presence of Turkish troops in Qatar. As such, the dispute has created an unprecedented political rift among Gulf States and their rulers and somehow worries the existing regimes. This worrying situation threatens the core principles of some of these States, including those who are still neutral towards the dispute. Keywords: Kuwait, mediation, dispute, Gulf crisis, Qatar, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) The Kuwaiti Mediation Efforts and the Gulf Crisis Test Mediation efforts are considered an important peaceful means that contributes to the settlement of international disputes whereby the mediator takes it upon themselves to solve existing disagreements through negotiations and discussions and sitting down at one table.1 Mediation has emerged in the charter of several international organizations in a very explicit way; foremost amongst these organizations are the United Nations and the League of Arab States.
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