Emirati ambassador: US should rethink its air base in Qatar
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The United Arab Emirates' ambassador in Washington says the US should reconsider keeping a major air base in Qatar given concerns about Qatari support for extremism.
Ambassador Yousef al-Otaiba says the US and the UAE have both allowed "bad behavior" by Qatar to continue for a long time. He says he believes action hasn't been taken because of al-Udeid air base, a hub for US military operations in the Middle East.
Otaiba says it's been "a very nice insurance policy against any additional pressure."
The ambassador says the UAE hasn't urged the US to move the base, but is "willing to have that conversation." He's suggesting troops could be moved to his country, instead. Otaiba is pointing to new defense cooperation agreement the US and the UAE signed last month.
