No agreement on the acquisition of S-400, says Qatar

No agreement was reached on Doha's acquisition of a Russian S-400 air defense system, a source of tension with Riyadh, which threatened to retaliate militarily if the sale came to fruition, said Friday. Emir of Qatar.

"I will not go into detail but I can tell you that there is no agreement, it is true that we discussed, we talked about it but until now it There is nothing, "said Sheikh Tamin Ben Hamad Al-Thani in French at the press, after a working lunch with Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee.

According to an article in Le Monde in early June, King Salman of Saudi Arabia sent a letter to Emmanuel Macron asking him to intervene to prevent Qatar from acquiring this system, declaring itself ready for action. military against the emirate if it succeeded.

When asked about this, Emmanuel Macron pointed out that the "schemas too complex never" and that France was not intended to "interfere" in "dialogues three or four".
 "I read it like you but there are more direct ways to send messages to Moscow because I understand that Saudi Arabia also had discussions with Moscow," said the head of the French state at a press conference alongside the Emir of Qatar. "We talk to each of our partners about joint projects (…) and we do not interfere in dialogues with three or four, we already have enough to do."

More than a year after the break-up of diplomatic relations between Qatar on one side and Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt on the other, tensions remain high in the Gulf.
 Accused of financing radical Islamist groups and getting closer to Iran, Doha rejects the allegations in its entirety and denounces the "illegal siege" imposed on his country and a desire to put "under guardianship" by some Arab states. "Qatar is a friendly country and a reliable partner with which we act decisively against terrorism," said Emmanuel Macron, hailing Qatar's "concrete efforts" in the fight against the financing of terrorism.

On the crisis in the Gulf, the Head of State reaffirmed France's support for the mediation of Kuwait and assured that France would continue to "talk to all parties" and invite "dialogue and reconciliation".
 "The Qatari suffer daily actions taken, families are separated because of the current crisis.This crisis must be resolved through dialogue, it is the regional stability in a context marked by increasing tensions", a- he said.

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