June 15, 2017
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia’s King Salman to resolve the rift with Qatar before the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, according to an interview with Portuguese state broadcaster RTP on Thursday.
Erdogan also said that Muslim countries should not be imposing sanctions on fellow Muslim nations.
Qatar is facing a severe economic and diplomatic boycott by Saudi Arabia and its regional allies who cut ties last week, in the worst rift among Gulf Arab states in years.
They accuse Qatar of funding terrorism and cosying up toIran, all of which Qatar denies.
Turkey, which backs Qatar, has sought to solve the issue through diplomacy, saying the rift is detrimental to the Islamic world.
“We want this to be resolved through dialogue by the end of Ramadan. Currently, Saudi Arabia’s king can take such a step” to resolve the crisis, Erdogan told RTP.
“A Muslim should not opt for such sanctions on another Muslim, especially during the month of Ramadan.”
Ramadan is due to end later in June.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is due to visit Saudi Arabia on Friday in an attempt to help solve the crisis.
