Qatari and other nationals queue at the check-in counters of the Hamad International Airport in Doha.
Kuwait City - Sheikh Sabah said Gulf countries had "one destiny" because of their historical ties and cross-border family relations.
Published: Mon 19 Jun 2017, 9:56 PM
Last updated: Tue 20 Jun 2017, 12:01 AM
Kuwait's ruler called for Gulf Arab states to overcome a diplomatic dispute with Qatar that has led to the worst regional split in years, saying all parties had a duty to preserve regional unity.
His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, the Amir of Kuwait, who is leading mediation efforts after Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain severed ties with Qatar two weeks ago, said he hoped the crisis could be solved through dialogue.
In a speech marking the holy month of Ramadan, Sheikh Sabah said he hoped the remaining days of the holy month would create "the atmosphere for resolving unfortunate differences and ending the rift through dialogue and communication" in the Gulf.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain cut diplomatic and travel ties with Qatar on June 5 over its funding of militant groups and fomenting instability.
Sheikh Sabah said Gulf countries had "one destiny" because of their historical ties and cross-border family relations. These common interests gave the Gulf states a duty to remain united, he said in the televised speech.
He prayed for efforts "to preserve our Gulf states, their peoples and to avoid all that disrupts their strong relations and threatens their security and safety."
Sheikh Sabah also said the region and the rest of the world faced the "growing phenomenon of terrorism" and said Kuwait stood in solidarity with the international community to combat it and help eliminate its origins, without specifying.
Iraq PM in Saudi
In another diplomatic efforts, Iraq's Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday.
Abadi is to hold talks with the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait's Amir Sheikh Sabah and Iranian president Hassan Rohani during his tour of the region.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef greeted Abadi when he landed in the Red Sea city of Jeddah for the one-day visit, state media reported. Riyadh has long expressed concern about Iran's "interference" in the region, including through Iraq's paramilitary Hashed Al Shaabi which has played a major role in reclaiming parts of Iraq seized by the terrorist group Daesh.
Gulf states are also angered by a ransom allegedly paid by Doha to Tehran-linked militias earlier this year to secure the release of a hunting party, including members of the Qatari royal family, kidnapped in southern Iraq.
EU backs Kuwaiti efforts
The European Union has thrown its weight behind Kuwaiti-led mediation efforts to help end the Gulf standoff over Qatar.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Monday that "we are ready to help, assist and accompany this mediation in all ways that might be requested."
But she added, after chairing talks between EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, that the problem must be resolved within the region and not by outside powers.
She said Gulf countries have the "strengths and wisdom to find a political way out of this crisis."
- Reuters, AFP, AP
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