Qatar rejects US Jerusalem move

Qatar has rejected anddenounced US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem asthe capital of Israel, warning the international community of itsconsequences and repercussions.In a press briefing yesterday,Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lulwa al-Khater underlined that the movehad no effect on the legal or moral status of the occupied city ofJerusalem, which is in the heart of millions of Muslims and Christians.“Themove confronts international legitimacy, including but not limited tothe UN Resolution No (478) of 1980, which stipulates the withdrawal ofdiplomatic missions from Jerusalem.”The official spokesperson calledon the United States to back down from the decision, “which represents aunilateral step that has received a general rejection in internationalforums” noting that this was evident in the emergency Security Councilmeeting on December 8, and reflected in the reactions and successivemeetings in this regard, “the most recent of which was the OIC emergencysummit held in Istanbul today”.Answering a question, al-Khaternoted that the United Nations resolutions on the Palestinian issue weremany and existing, but what was required was to act uniformly at boththe Arab and Islamic levels in order to push these decisions intoaction.“This is confirmed by the State of Qatar through itsparticipation in the Arab League or through its participation in theIstanbul summit today.”In another context, the official said Qataris looking forward to participate in Iraq Reconstruction conference,which will be held in Kuwait in the first quarter of next year, stemmingfrom its commitment to the renaissance of the sisterly Republic ofIraq, asserting that post-ISIS battle is no less serious than fightingthe organisation.She expressed the hope that Iraq will restore itsstrength, unity and prosperity through its people with all their sectsand categories.Al-Khater said Qatar has condemned the bombing of thesubway station in New York and stressed that the attack on innocentcivilians was a criminal act that cannot be accepted under anyjustification.On the Gulf crisis, the spokesperson highly praisedthe efforts exerted by Kuwait which resulted in the holding of the GCCSummit on time.She affirmed that Qatar’s participation at the levelof leadership reflected  the country’s appreciation for these effortsand that the mediation of the emir of Kuwait was the means through whichQatar works through, and that the participation was aimed at preservingthe GCC from total disintegration.She stressed that Qatar continuedits approach to heal the rift, while it continued to strengthen itsstrategic partnerships with various countries  to ensure thesustainability of its economy and its independence.“Qatar iscontinuing all its projects, and although the current situation is notthe best regionally and was not chosen by Qatar, it calls for dialogueand always stresses the importance of the unity of the Gulf entity, andQatar will not be a reason for the demolition of the Gulf House.”Inresponse to a question about the increase in Qatar’s spending onarmaments, and the signing of several agreements in this regardrecently, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that most of theseagreements had  been under negotiations long before the crisis startedand referred to bilateral relations.