Turkey, Qatar to stage drill and US may join it, Turkish official says

Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş said that Turkey and Qatar were planning to conduct military exercises in coming days and that US forces may join in the exercises
Thursday, 20 July 2017 06:37

Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş in an interview broadcast on July 19 called on Saudi Arabia to drop 13 demands it and other Arab states had made of Qatar, saying they represent an infringement on its sovereignty.

Speaking in an interview with the Qatar-based Al Jazeera channel, Kurtulmuş also issued a veiled warning to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), saying that conflicts breed conflict and the outcome may be unpredictable.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will visit Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar on July 23-24 as part of efforts to resolve the crisis. Kurtulmuş also said Turkey had no plans to shut its military base in Qatar, where a fresh contingent of troops arrived on Wednesday, saying it was not aimed against any of Qatar's neighbours.

He also said that Turkey and Qatar were planning to conduct military exercises in coming days and that US forces may join in the exercises.