On Dec. 20, Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met with Algeria’s Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia in Algiers. The two discussed strategies for strengthening Doha-Algiers ties and other regional issues, such as US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the Libyan civil war. Shortly before the chief Qatari diplomat’s visit, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika wrote to the emir of Qatar, praising Doha and Algiers’ “exceptional” relationship and vowing to boost bilateral ties to the “highest level, in the best interests of both peoples.”
The visit was another indicator of how the Anti-Terror Quartet (ATQ) — Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — has failed to bring the Maghreb region’s internationally recognized governments, save Mauritania, behind its anti-Qatar campaign.
