Joe Biden designates Qatar as key non-NATO ally of US: White House

United States President Joe Biden has recently designated Qatar as a key non-NATO ally of the US, paving the way for greater military and commercial relations between the two nations. According to a statement from the White House, President Biden said, “I hereby designate the State of Qatar as a major Non-NATO Ally of the United States for the purposes of the Act and the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.).” 

Biden has designated Qatar using the authority vested in him as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America, as well as section 517 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, the White House said.  

The recognition of Qatar on Thursday as a non-NATO ally of the US is a significant shift from his predecessor, Donald Trump, who called the Arab nation a terrorist supporter, leading to an economic embargo by its neighbours, TRT World reported. It is to note that  close non-NATO allies have strategic working links with the United States military.

Biden had assured Qatar's Emir that he would offer Doha the special status

During a meeting at the White House in January, Biden had assured Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani that he would offer Doha the special status. According to TRT World, Qatar has never acknowledged and accepted any of the Trump administration's accusations against it and has attempted to resolve the issues through diplomatic channels. 

In addition to this, Qatar has aided last summer's US military evacuations of Afghan aid workers as well as US citizens from Afghanistan, Moreover, Qatar maintains the largest American airbase in the Middle East, and has functioned as a go-between with the Taliban for the last three US governments as they worked to unwind America's longest conflict. Even though the US pullout was a debacle, Qatar and NATO ally Türkiye continued to be the big players in the nation. Both the US and Turkish militaries have bases in Qatar, TRT World reported.  

Meanwhile, previously on February 28, Joe Biden and Tamim had discussed Middle East stability and the situation in Afghanistan that has been witnessing a surge in humanitarian crisis aftermath of the US pullout and Taliban takeover last year. The leaders also talked about the United States' efforts to resuscitate the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. 

(Image: AP)