Qatar Punched Above Its Weight. Now It’s Paying the Price.<br />Citing Qatar’s support of “terrorists” — a now commonly used label for one’s political opponents, in addition to jihadist groups — Qatar’s two partners in the Gulf Cooperation Council broke off diplomatic relations on June 5 and imposed a land and air blockade<br />that left the small nation with only a single access route for essential supplies.<br />The dispute between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on one side<br />and Qatar on the other is of long standing and — hyperbolic headlines aside — remains largely unchanged today.<br />The arrival of President Trump in the White House and his appointment of senior officials who, along with many in the House<br />and Senate, despise the nuclear deal and favor continued enmity with Iran now offer the Saudis the chance to confront Iran by proxy — the proxy being the United States military.<br />The Saudis now believe Iran is taking advantage of its new international standing<br />and resulting access to business and investments by ramping up its military role and support in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.<br />The two have had a rocky relationship — a couple of coup attempts in Doha, occasional border skirmishes —<br />but to Saudi Arabia, Qatar has been an irritant at most, a slightly errant G. C.C.
