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Asif Iqbal
Doha
The UAE continues to import gas from Qatar while levelling absurd allegations against Doha, a clear sign of hypocrisy, a top official has said.
President of the Administrative Control and Transparency Authority (ACTA) HE Abdullah bin Hamad al Attiyah has come down heavily on the four Arab countries that have imposed a blockade on Qatar and has termed their accusations"stupid."
"They accuse us of financing terrorism but the UAE is importing gas from us and paying us millions of dollars. They love our gas but accuse us of financing terrorism. This is hypocrisy," Attiyah told the visiting delegation of Qatar-Japan Friendship Association on Wednesday.
He said the UAE imports Qatar's gas for about a third of its daily needs. Qatar did not shut natural gas supplies to the UAE despite the Saudi bloc severing ties with Doha, he said.
The Dolphin network takes gas from Qatar's North Field via a 364-kilometre pipeline to Abu Dhabi's Taweelah power station, then runs up to the northern emirates, including Fujairah port.
Attiyah said the blockading countries have tried to tarnish the image of Qatar, but have failed to prove their allegations.
He said these countries will turned out to be the losers as their campaign against Qatar is based on a very flimsy ground. Attiyah said Qatar has always treated its expatriates with respect and dignity."We did not ask any of the many Bahrainis, Emiratis or Saudis or Egyptians staying in Qatar to leave the country as we believe that politics and the public should be kept apart," Attiyah said.
The countries imposing the blockade against Qatar had asked students and families to return to Qatar within 48 hours."They were insensitive towards relationships and then they accuse of funding terrorism," Attiyah noted. Attiyah expressed his surprise over a law introduced in the UAE that punishes people for sympathising with Qatar.
