Qatar by Fromherz Allen J;

Author:Fromherz, Allen J;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
Published: 2012-06-14T16:00:00+00:00

Iran

On 3 October 2009 Reuters reported that Iranian sources, including the head of Iran’s offshore operations, were claiming that Qatar National Bank was planning to finance Iran’s oil development with a $400 million loan. One day later, the bank denied the existence of the loan.39 Nevertheless, commercial relationships between Qatar and Iran are repeatedly reported as well as Qatari–Iranian cooperation over the North Field (Iran calls it the South Pars Field), the vast natural gas deposit whose ownership they share – it is divided by a maritime border. The ornate Iranian embassy is located on one of the most prominent parts of the Doha Corniche. One of the Emir’s favourite restaurants was specially commissioned by him in a design based on Persian style. The multimillion-dollar building consists of a series of stunning chambers, where light reflects off walls inlaid with crystals, semi-precious stones and glass. In many ways, these dazzling Iranian chambers, where reality seems to fuse with mere image, perflectly symbolizes the complex relationship between Qatar and Iran.

Heir Apparent Prince Tamim has made several special trips to Iran and conservative President Ahmadinejad has accepted invitations to Qatar, despite Western protests. If it were possible to ignore the fact that Qatar is the headquarters of Central Command of the US military, one might mistake Qatar’s supposed sympathy with the Iranian regime as genuine. However, the reality of Qatar and the Sheikh’s views on Iran are, like so much of Qatari foreign relations, deliberately clouded in ambiguity and conditionality. While certainly wary of the possibility of Iran controlling the Persian Gulf should the US withdraw from the region, Qatar is also aware that such a withdrawal is highly unlikely. By developing relations with Iran independently of US interests, Qatar can secure and expand lucrative relations with its large Gulf neighbour. It could even be argued that Qatar is attempting to position itself as a secret negotiator between the USA and Iran, reaping the benefits of mediation yet again.

The appearance of neutrality and Qatar’s reputation as an effective negotiator lie at the core of Qatar’s sometimes spectacularly successful foreign policy. Despite the country’s ability to broker disputes through remaining open and tolerating use of its economic and media resources by a wide range of parties and viewholders, Qatar seems to be overwhelmed by the dispute between its two most important international partners, the USA and Iran, however. One problem with Qatar’s attempt to appeal to both Iran and the USA is that the techniques it has used to resolve, mitigate and ultimately gain prestige from other conflicts are subject to major risks. Qatar cannot appeal to both the USA and Iran in the way it has appealed to both Hamas and Israel, or to all the parties in the Lebanon conflict, or even to both Sheikh Qaradawi (a neo-traditional television cleric) and Saad Eddin Ibrahim (a liberal pro-democracy reformer who famously supported the overthrow of Saddam Hussein) and others with opposing ideologies. There are two reasons why Qatar’s standard foreign policy formula will not work in this instance.

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