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Qatar Emir to attend GCC summit in Kuwait this week

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Qatar Emir to attend GCC summit in Kuwait this week

May lead to crisis resolution if Saudi Arabia participates

The diplomatic thaw in Middle East seems to be in the offing. Having faced six months of blockade by Saudi led quartet Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will attend 38th  Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Kuwait later this week.

Qatar’s foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani announced on Sunday that Emir has accepted Kuwait’s invitation to attend the two-day summit beginning on Tuesday.

According to Doha based Aljazeera, the foreign minister said, “I will attend the ministerial council tomorrow and the emir will attend the summit.” He was speaking at a forum.  “It is important that the GCC system remains alive,” he said.

The emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah was the first Arab leader who tried to mediate for resolving Qatar crisis involving diplomatic impasse.

Last week, Kuwait had invited all six GCC member states. It is still not clear if all other leaders would attend the summit.

The GCC, established in 1981, the early years of Iraq-Iran war (1980-88), is a political and economic alliance of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The recent Qatar crisis has created ruptures with a debate if GCC will survive due to ongoing tension in the region.

On June 5 this year, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE and Egypt had suddenly severed diplomatic, air, sea and land route ties with Qatar. They accused Qatar of supporting “terrorism”, maintaining cordial relations with Iran and meddling in the internal affairs of their countries.

Qatar strongly denied all allegations. Doha maintains there is no legitimate justification for the blockade calling it “a violation of its sovereignty”.

Saudi Arabia had also appealed to “all brotherly nations” to join the blockading countries. Kuwait and Oman did not join the quartet. Instead Kuwait, with US support, tried to mediate for resolving the crisis.

In the third week of June, Saudi Arabia led quartet put forwarded 13-point charter of demands asking Qatar, among others, to cut its ties with Iran, close down new Turkish army base in its territory and shut its Aljazeera news network.

In August, Qatari foreign minister visited Tehran and both countries decided to send their ambassadors to each other’s capitals. Qatar had called its Ambassador along with Saudi Arabia after violent protest against Saudi Embassy in Tehran in January 2016 after Mina tragedy during Hajj.

In October, Kuwait’s emir warned of the potential collapse of the Gulf Cooperation Council if the crisis continues.

He was quoted saying, “Contrary to our wishes and hopes, the Gulf crisis has the potential of escalating; therefore, all of us must be fully aware of its potential consequences.” “Any escalation will bring with it an outright call for regional and international intervention, which will destroy the security of the Gulf and its people.”

At the end of October, Qatar’s Emir sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, during an interview with US based CBS News, had accused Saudi Arabia of seeking “regime change” in his country. He had also asserted that he will not bow to pressure and country’s independence and sovereignty is a “red line”.

Bahrain, which is enjoying Saudi army’s support in suppressing its pro-democratic opposition since 2011, had indicated in late October that its king Hamad bin Issa Al-Khalifa will not attend GCC summit if attended by Qatar unless Doha “correct its approach”.

Meanwhile, Marwan Kabalan, director of policy analysis at the Doha Institute has told Al Jazeera about the imminent danger of a GCC collapse.

He said, “The emir of Kuwait knows very well that if the crisis runs for long, we’re going to see two blocks within the GCC. One is led by Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and Bahrain, and the other will actually have Qatar, Oman and to a lesser extent, probably Kuwait. So we’ll be having then two GCCs, rather than one.”

“Qatar has made it clear many times, by the emir of Qatar and by other Qatari officials, that they cannot accept a total surrender. They want a negotiation. They want mutual concessions by all sides, actually, to solve the crisis,” added Kabalan.

The GCC is the only pan-Arab alliance active with its leaders meeting twice a year. In December the leaders meet in the member states (in rotation) and once in Riyadh, the headquarters of the body.

The official Saudi Press Agency (SPA), does not carry any information on who will, if any, will represent Saudi Arabia in the GCC summit in Kuwait till 11.30 Monday morning (local time). Kuwaiti News Agency (KUNA) also  does not carry any news story telling the names of countries participating in the pre-summit ministerial meeting on Monday.

However, most of the Arab news websites carried story about participation of Qatar’s Emir in the summit.

However, Gulf News reports that GCC summit’s fate and level of representation will most likely depend on the outcome of the foreign ministers’ meeting on Monday.

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India envoy Dinesh Trivedi meets PM Modi after talks with Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman 

India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi met PM Modi after talks with Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman amid diplomatic tensions.

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India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Tuesday, a day after his meeting with Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in Dhaka.

According to the High Commission of India in Bangladesh, Trivedi sought PM Modi’s guidance on further strengthening the bilateral relationship between India and Bangladesh through a constructive and people-centric approach.

The meeting came a day after Trivedi held discussions with Tarique Rahman on matters of mutual interest and ways to advance ties between the two neighbouring countries.

Dinesh Trivedi Meets Bangladesh PM

During his meeting with Tarique Rahman on Monday, Trivedi conveyed greetings from Prime Minister Modi and reiterated India’s commitment to working with the Bangladeshi administration and its people in a positive, constructive and forward-looking manner.

The two sides discussed issues of mutual interest and explored avenues for strengthening India-Bangladesh relations with a people-centric approach.

The engagement took place at the Prime Minister’s Office in the Cabinet Division at the Bangladesh Secretariat. Trivedi also shared his experience of serving in Dhaka over the previous two months.

Sheikh Hasina Extradition Request

The meeting assumed significance as Bangladesh has expressed hope that India will expedite the extradition process involving former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted following a student-led uprising in 2024.

According to a statement issued by the Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Office, Dhaka also reiterated its request for India to return individuals it alleges were involved in the killing of Shahid Osman Hadi, a prominent figure associated with the July uprising who was shot on December 12, 2025.

Tarique Rahman stressed the need to create a suitable environment to take forward relations between Bangladesh and India.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, Prime Minister’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir and other officials attended the meeting.

India-Bangladesh Ties Amid Diplomatic Friction

The latest high-level engagements come amid diplomatic tensions between the two countries following a virtual press interaction by Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi on August 5.

The event, organised by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia to mark the second anniversary of her ouster, prompted strong objections from Dhaka.

During the interaction, Hasina said she remained determined to return to Bangladesh in December and restore democracy, while acknowledging the possibility of imprisonment or a death sentence upon her return.

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs subsequently registered a strong protest and said the development had affected public sentiment and complicated efforts to strengthen bilateral cooperation.

India has said the government had no involvement in the event. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said it was organised by a private media entity and clarified that New Delhi did not endorse views expressed at the forum.

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Trump, PM Modi will resolve tariff issue over Russian oil trade, says US official

White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro said Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will resolve the issue over US tariff threats linked to India’s Russian oil trade.

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US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will resolve the issue surrounding the threat of US tariffs linked to India’s purchase of Russian oil, White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro said on Tuesday.

Navarro’s remarks came days after the US Senate passed a bill authorising the US President to impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on the top five purchasers of Russian oil. The measure argues that such purchases directly contribute to financing Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Navarro comments on India’s Russian oil trade

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Navarro said India was not involved in the oil trade with Russia before the Ukraine war began in 2022.

He alleged that India became heavily involved in the trade after Russia’s invasion and sold refined products on behalf of Russia, which he said helped support the Russian war effort.

“Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, India was not involved in the oil trade with Russia, but afterwards it got heavily involved,” Navarro said.

The White House adviser also claimed that the issue had since been resolved and attributed some of the shift in India’s Russian oil trade to an opinion article he recently wrote in the Financial Times.

Trump and Modi will resolve issue, Navarro says

Navarro said the relationship between Trump and Modi would help address the tariff-related issue.

“The president and your prime minister have a very good working relationship. They are going to work that out amongst themselves,” he said, adding that it was not his place to intervene.

His comments come amid US concerns over countries purchasing Russian oil and proposed measures aimed at imposing additional tariffs on major buyers.

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US Senate passes Russia sanctions bill, India-China face 100% tariff risk

The US Senate has passed a Russia sanctions bill that could allow 100% tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas, including India and China.

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Donald Trump

The US Senate has approved a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that could allow President Donald Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on major buyers of Russian oil or natural gas, including India and China.

The legislation was passed by an 86-11 vote and will now move to the US House of Representatives, which is scheduled to reconvene on August 31.

The bill is named in honour of Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a strong supporter of Ukraine who died on July 11. Graham had pushed for tougher sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine.

India and China among major Russian energy buyers

The legislation gives the US president the power to impose tariffs on the world’s top five purchasers of Russian oil or natural gas.

India and China are among those countries, along with Azerbaijan, Hungary and Slovakia.

The bill also contains an exception for countries importing less than 15% of their natural gas from Russia and taking steps to reduce their dependence on Russian supplies.

What does the Russia sanctions bill contain?

Apart from the proposed tariffs, the legislation includes sanctions targeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior Russian political and military officials, financial institutions and energy projects.

The bill would also expand US sanctions to older and reflagged oil tankers allegedly used by Moscow to bypass existing restrictions on Russian oil and energy revenues.

At the same time, the White House would have the option to waive sanctions or restrictions if the president certifies to Congress that doing so is in the national interest.

Bill also extends Iran sanctions law

The legislation also contains a provision related to Iran. It would extend the expiration date of the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 until 2031.

The law penalises companies that invest in Iran’s energy sector.

The bill’s passage in the Senate marks the next step in the US legislative process, but it still needs approval from the House of Representatives before it can move forward.

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