“I know there are businesses in the southern Gulf states that are now very wary of doing any business in Qatar and... there are expats who work in Qatar who are trying to change jobs to southern Gulf countries and they’re residencies are not being approved. “There seems to be some policy in place making it difficult to do contractual agreements and joint business operations between those countries. “Companies that have headquarters in Qatar and also operate in other Gulf states might face some problems. It will depend on the nature of the company and its relationship with the leadership in the country.” Arab officials have claimed Qatar and Turkey are establishing spy networks in GCC states to report on plans to act against the Muslim Brotherhood, a leading Gulf military analyst has said. Director of research and consultancy at the Institute of Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA), Dr Theodore Karasik, could not elaborate on the allegations during an interview with Arabian Businessbut said the suspected spying was a key element of the anger in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain against fellow Gulf Cooperation Council member Qatar. Karasik said the escalating conflict had the potential to dramatically shift security ties in the region. “There’s a major dispute ongoing that has immense consequences for the future security architecture of the region.” Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain also are angry at Qatar’s interference in their internal affairs and its increasingly close relationship with Turkey and Iran. The kingdom could restrict access to its airports and airspace for Qatar Airways, potentially causing a dramatic dent in the airline’s budget and putting at risk its plans to launch a domestic-only carrier in Saudi Arabia later this year. Oman, which has for years preferred to sit on the outside of the GCC alliance, and Kuwait, where the Muslim Brotherhood has its own political party, so far have not publicly spoken about the rift between their neighbours, although it is understood that Kuwait has privately expressed disappointment at the withdrawal of the ambassadors. Karasik said changes in security ties in the region also could affect businesses, with firms based in Qatar and also operating in other GCC states potentially forced to reconsider their alliances. “Depending on where the company is, they might need to make an adjustment in order to have business continuity because this is a political disaster for them,” he said. arabianbusiness/qatar-creating-spy-networks-in-gulf-states-claims-military-expert-542526.html?page=0
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 23:37:10 +0000