Qatar can be described as a case, an agent or a contractor, but not as a state (albeit small) in the common meaning. It has lived on many contradictions and has always imagined that it was more clever than its Gulf neighbors, while some Arabs tolerated it for the sake of Saudi Arabia, which protected it up until the latest remarks of its Emir.
In his remarks, the Emir of Qatar attacked Saudi Arabia in an open confrontation; he even said that the US Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar is to confront the ambitions of Saudi Arabia (without naming it). By this remark, he undermines the alliance of the Arab-American summit in Riyadh, after his role had been marginalized and the importance of his services brushed aside.
The status of this ministrate is amazing. It takes over the role of a great state because of its money and satellite channel, until it has become a mystery that many people cannot decipher. Fate gave it the oil and gas that brought it money. Fate also afflicted its peaceful people with a ruling family that is the worst in the history of the Arab regimes.
It is not wrong to be small without historical depth and limited in your human resources; but the defect (and all of the defects) is to wear a dress that is not yours, and imagine that you can suddenly metamorphose from a traditional and conservative country into a revolutionary country at times; a jihadist, takfiri country at other times; a liberal country on demand; and spend all this money in destruction and sabotage and imagine that a TV satellite channel can make your future.
It’s as if you thought that you could buy a role with the money that you pay to Arab politicians to host a conference or sponsor an agreement; or send to terrorist groups in revenge against an Arab country with history; or even the sports events that receive the misdeeds of your money as you pay to organize the World Cup and then imagine that you can become a major state with bribes.
Strangely enough, Qatar which has decided to become revolutionary, as its channel speaks in the tone of Revolution and forgets that Revolution is not made in satellite channels (there are things that money can’t buy) and can’t be made through bribing people.
Qatar has not witnessed throughout its history a single revolution, election or instance of active political life.
It claims to be a Islamic state and supports the Muslim Brotherhood and the takfiri groups; it considers itself an ally of Hamas (describing Hamas as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people) and of the Israelis at the same time!
It defends the weak against the colonial powers and regards its channel as the voice of the voiceless, while at the same time building the largest American base in the Arab world.
As for its Revolutionary ideas, they are on demand and as it wishes. It expresses itself against Egypt if it is in the interests of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Takfiri groups, and turns into a promoter of stability and settlement if any of these groups are in power or controlling parts of any country in the region.
Qatar has tried to play the role of mediator between many contradictions, sometimes between Hamas and Israel, other times between Iran and Saudi Arabia; or Hezbollah and Takfiri groups. It also chose to be a sponsor of terrorism in the region and imagined that this role would give it a permanent position; and in fact, this gave it a role, but it has been rejected and many Arab and international parties wait for the opportunity to get rid of it.
Amazingly, Qatar could have had a reformist and peaceful role in the Arab region accepted by the people, if it did not play on all the ropes and contradictions all at the same time; if only it respected its conservative and traditional culture, like the rest of the Gulf States, but it did not and does not accept to act in ways that are consistent with its internal structure.
The statements of the Emir of Qatar take advantage of many gaps that occurred at the Riyadh conference, but they do not offer any alternatives and correct any negatives, only play on the many contradictions among the countries of the region. And it will pay for this soon enough.
