In June 2017, during his first presidential term, Donald Trump had accused Qatar of sponsoring Islamist terrorism at the highest level and expressed the willingness to intervene in order to put an end to it. The statements can be found on the White House’s archived website for the first Trump administration, for instance:

“The nation of Qatar has historically been a funder of terrorism at a very high level…They have to end that funding, and its extremist ideology in terms of funding.”

At the time, Trump also tweeted his support for the diplomatic and economic blockade imposed on Qatar by the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain: “During my recent trip to the Middle East, I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar – look!”.

However, it is also essential to recall how Trump had suddenly changed his tone towards Doha shortly after, by offering to help the involved Gulf nations resolve their issues by inviting them to a White House meeting if necessary. Trump had also emphasized the importance of all countries in the region working together to prevent the financing of terrorist organizations, the promotion of extremist ideology, highlighting the importance…