Name? Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani
Westphalian identity? Qatari
Age? 40
Why is he in the news? Qatar’s foreign minister called for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to open for talks with Iran. This only weeks after Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations ended a three-year embargo and boycott of Qatar over close relations with Iran and alleged financing of terrorism.
Why do we care? This boldness comes as a surprise to us. It makes sense that these bold calls for action are coming from Qatar since the country shares the largest gas field with Iran and historically has had the best relation with Iran. But the point of time seems too close after normalisation with the other gulf states.
Why should you care? This is another reminder of how influential the US President is in the world as it signals to the Biden Administration greater potential for normalising relations with Iran back to pre-Trump times. How much should you care? On our scale, 5/10. We are talking world politics but nothing that will influence you immediately nor at a personal level.
Who else cares? Wendy Sheman; Joe Biden’s nominee for Deputy Secretary of State, was the key US negotiator of the 2015 Iran nuclear accord. Her nomination proves that the US will no longer maintain its extremely hawkish stance on Iran and rather return to some form of a nuclear agreement under Biden. Since Iran is enriching about one kilogram of uranium per day, Sheman will have trouble bringing the Gulf states to the table and Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani could prove an important ally in this process.
Any further comments? Israel and Saudi Arabia do not agree on much but they share a mutual dislike of another nuclear agreement with Iran. Let’s see how Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Wendy Sheman want to convince these two players to come to the table.
