US floats idea of upgrading Qatar to 'non-NATO ally' - Al-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Al-Monitor Staff

Al-Monitor Staff

Sep 17, 2020

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo(R) welcomes Qatars Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to launch the third annual US-Qatar Strategic Dialogue at the State Department in Washington, DC on September 14, 2020. (Photo by ERIN SCOTT / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ERIN SCOTT/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (R) welcomes Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to the third annual US-Qatar Strategic Dialogue at the State Department in Washington, DC on Sept. 14, 2020. — ERIN SCOTT/AFP via Getty Images

The Donald Trump administration is hoping to upgrade its partnership with Qatar to the status of "non-NATO ally," a senior State Department official said Thursday.

“We're going to move ahead, we hope, with designating Qatar a major non-NATO ally,” US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Arabian Gulf Affairs Timothy Lenderking said on a call with reporters.

This picture taken on December 5, 2019, shows a general view of the newsroom at the headquarters of the Qatar-based al-Jazeera satellite news channel in the capital Doha. - Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera has travelled a long and bumpy road from the early 2000s when it was best known for airing tapes of former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. It now cultivates a loyal youth audience on social media alongside the satellite channels which have won it both acclaim and scorn. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP) (P

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Al-Monitor Staff

Al-Monitor Staff

President Joe Biden meets with Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani in the Oval Office on Jan. 31, 2022, in Washington, DC.

Biden eyes Qatar as major non-NATO ally

Jared Szuba

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

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Andrew Parasiliti

Andrew Parasiliti

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, national security

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State Department shake-up leaves Qatar hanging

Jack Detsch

Jack Detsch