DUBAI (AP) \u2013 President Donald Trump has signed an executive order vowing to use all measures including US military action to defend the energy-rich nation of Qatar \u2014 though it remains unclear just what weight the pledge will carry. The text of the order, available Wednesday on the White House\u2019s website but dated Monday, appears to be another measure by Trump to assure the Qataris following Israel\u2019s surprise attack on the country targeting Hamas leaders as they weighed accepting a ceasefire with Israel over the war in the Gaza Strip. The order cites the two countries\u2019 \u201cclose cooperation\u201d and \u201cshared interest,\u201d vowing to \u201cguarantee the security and territorial integrity of the state of Qatar against external attack.\u201d \u201cThe United States shall regard any armed attack on the territory, sovereignty or critical infrastructure of the state of Qatar as a threat to the peace and security of the United States,\u201d the order says. \u201cIn the event of such an attack, the United States shall take all lawful and appropriate measures \u2014 including diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military \u2014 to defend the interests of the United States and of the state of Qatar and to restore peace and stability.\u201d The order apparently came during a visit to Washington on Monday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump organized a call by Netanyahu to Qatar during the visit in which Netanyahu \u201cexpressed his deep regret\u201d over the strike that killed six people, including a member of the Qatari security forces, the White House said. Qatari officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump\u2019s order. However, the Qatari-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera prominently reported about it Wednesday under the headline: \u201cNew Trump executive order guarantees Qatar security after Israeli attack.\u201d The true scope of the pledge remains in question. Typically, legally binding agreements, or treaties, need to receive the approval of the U.S. Senate. However, presidents have entered international agreements without the Senate\u2019s approval, like President Barack Obama did with Iran\u2019s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. And ultimately, any decision to take military action rests with the president. That uncertainty has clouded previous U.S. defense agreements in Trump\u2019s second term, like NATO\u2019s Article 5 guarantees. Qatar, a peninsular nation that sticks out into the Persian Gulf, became fantastically wealthy through its natural gas reserves. It has been a key U.S. military partner, allowing America\u2019s Central Command to have its forward operating base at its vast Al Udeid Air Base. President Joe Biden named Qatar as a major non-NATO ally in 2022, in part due to its help during America\u2019s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. In the aftermath of the Israeli attack, Saudi Arabia entered a mutual defense agreement with Pakistan, bringing the kingdom under Islamabad\u2019s nuclear umbrella. It\u2019s unclear whether other Gulf Arab countries, both worried about Israel and Iran as it faces reimposed United Nations sanctions over its nuclear program, may seek similar arrangements as well with the region\u2019s longtime security guarantor. \u201cThe Gulf\u2019s centrality in the Middle East and its significance to the United States warrants specific U.S. guarantees beyond President Donald J. Trump\u2019s assurances of nonrepetition and dinner meetings,\u201d wrote Bader al-Saif, a history professor at Kuwait University who analyzes Gulf Arab affairs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DUBAI (AP) \u2013 President Donald Trump has signed an executive order vowing to use all measures including US military action to defend the energy-rich nation of Qatar \u2014 though it remains unclear just what weight the pledge will carry. The text of the order, available Wednesday on the White House\u2019s website but dated Monday, appears […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":113113,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-113112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n