Qatar strikes defiant tone as no end in sight to Gulf crisis

Qatari officials struck a defiant tone on Monday, as the crisis in the Gulf entered a second week with no sign of a diplomatic resolution between the tiny Arab state and the Saudi-led bloc that severed ties with it.

Foreign Minister Mohammed Al Thani expressed his government’s frustration at not receiving specific demands from the Saudi alliance, which he said meant there was no basis for a diplomatic solution. The finance minister and the central bank said Qatar has the financial firepower to defend its currency and economy, while the head of Qatar Airways -- suffering from the regional overflight blockade -- accused the US of exacerbating regional tensions.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have cut diplomatic and transport links with Qatar, calling on it to distance itself from Iran and to stop funding Islamist groups. Qatar denies sponsoring terrorism and accuses the Saudis of seeking to dominate smaller neighbours.

“Just as they have a right to accuse, we have the right to respond and the right to see the proof behind these allegations,” Al Thani told reporters in Paris in comments broadcast by Al-Jazeera. “We would understand these concerns if their assumption was that our policy is impacting their security, and we would sit at the table, discuss them and refute these allegations.”

The unprecedented measures have prompted investors and economists to ponder how long Qatar, the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, can weather the pressure without having to devalue its currency or sell any of its global assets. Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, one of the world’s largest, controls stakes in companies from Glencore Plc to Barclays Plc.