Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry had phone calls with his Russian and Kuwaiti counterparts on Thursday and discussed the results of a recent meeting between the four Arab countries boycotting Qatar, as well as ways to boost the fight against terrorism. Shoukry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that the four countries, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, have reaffirmed their rejection of "Qatar's support for terrorism and extremism,” and of their demands of Qatar in this regard, according to a foreign ministry statement. Last month, the four Arab states severed diplomatic ties and transport links with Qatar, accusing the oil-rich Gulf state of supporting terrorism and supporting regional foe Iran. Doha has denied the accusations. Foreign ministers from the four countries convened in Cairo two days ago as a 10-day deadline for Doha to meet their demands had expired. They condemned Qatar's response as "not serious” and "negative." The four states said late on Thursday that Doha's refusal to abide by a list of demands they had issued it, proves its links to terror groups, pledging to take new political, economic and legal measures against it. During Thursday's phone conversation with Lavrov, Shoukry called on the international community to boost the fight against terrorism and the crackdown on the financing of terrorist groups. The two leaders also discussed the Syrian crisis ahead of upcoming peace talks between Syrian government and opposition scheduled in Geneva this month. The duo agreed to convene in Cairo or Moscow soon to discuss issues of mutual interest. Also on Thursday, Shoukry received a phone call from Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah during which the pair discussed the Cairo talks to solve the rift with Doha. Al-Sabah promised to visit Cairo soon to carry a message to Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. Kuwait has been acting as a mediator since the beginning of the crisis with Doha.
