Qatar rejects attempts to ‘drive wedge’ with US over gas pause
Al Jazeera
Qatari official denies political motives for decision to halt LNG production following Iranian strikes.
Qatar has rejected claims in sections of Israeli media that it had stopped its LNG production to affect energy prices in the US, calling such accusations an attempt to “drive a wedge” between Qatar and the US.
In a statement on Thursday, a senior Qatari official told Al Jazeera that “Qatar will always prioritise people’s safety over political or economic gain.”
“It is no surprise that unofficial mouthpieces of [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu are attempting to exploit this period of global instability to sow further tension and division across the region,” the official said.
QatarEnergy suspended liquefied natural gas (LNG) production last week following an Iranian drone attack, straining the global LNG market. Qatar supplies 20 percent of the world’s LNG.
According to Qatar’s Ministry of Defence, Iranian drones struck two sites, a water tank at a power plant in Mesaieed Industrial City and an energy facility in Ras Laffan belonging to QatarEnergy, the world’s largest LNG producer.
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