Among the subjects covered by the field of international relations is that of small states: the approaches they adopt and the challenges they face. Small states, particularly those trapped between neighbours with large areas and populations find themselves in a difficult situation. Similar to family members, states could be divided into big and small, old and new, rich and poor, wise and fool…etc, each with its own way of behaving.

In the contemporary world, it is not acceptable from a small state to overlook others' capabilities and pursue goals that outstrip the actual resources at its disposal. Nation's weights cannot be solely measured by their banks' accounts or bombastic rhetoric, but they have more to do with their legacy based upon, history, location, role, and scientific progress. As for the Arab World, one could see different kinds of nations with exaggerated ambitions and uncalculated adventures.

In this context, Qatar is a very particular case. It is a small country in terms of population and area. Yet it is economically influential given the peninsula's huge reserves of natural gas. When location is concerned, Qatar is among the countries overlooking the Arabian Gulf, which is the focus of concern for many great and medium powers. Equally important however, Qatar has Al-Jazeera: the renowned satellite TV that contributes in shaping the region's public opinion.

Qatar is so ambitious that it spares no effort to stress its regional role, particularly when it comes to thorny files including those of Lebanon, Yemen, Sudan and Palestine. The close military and defence ties with the US offer protection to the tiny peninsula. Inconsistent as it may be, Qatar displays openness towards Israel - which Al-Jazeera describes as the Arabs' prime enemy. Hence it managed to win the support of the vociferous Israeli lobby in Washington. Meanwhile, Qatar is keen to boost its relations with Tehran regardless of the repercussions that would be seriously detrimental to the interests of the Arabs in general and members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in particular.

Qatar's policy appears somehow elusive. It is keen to perform alone, as if it were a big country, despite the insufficient political and diplomatic leverage it possesses. And it wants to be the vanguard of the region's political scene that provides breakthroughs in reconciliation accords. Such inclination was all too obvious in the Lebanese case. After two years of political stalemate, Doha stepped in and hosted a meeting that gathered conflicting Lebanese factions, and a deal was reached. Yet the problem is that Qatar disregarded others' efforts and moves, for the Doha Agreement was in fact the result of hard work made by the Arab League, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. However, the biased Qatari media turned a blind eye to this reality.

Despite repeated denials on the part of Qatari officials, the tiny peninsula managed to perform as the launching pad for the US influence in the region. It is thought that the presence of a US military base in its territories would safeguard Qatar, give it a higher status in relation to the Americans and more freedom of action in the region.

In 2002, when Saudi Arabia was struggling to end the US military presence in its territories, Qatar emerged as a substitute. Hence the foundation of Al Udeid air base, which became the largest US military base in the Gulf area. It now hosts the US Central Command that was tasked with engineering the US military operations against Iraq in 2003. At that time, Al-Jazeera adopted a discourse hostile to US forces as though they "invaded an Arab nation and killed innocent civilians".

The same approach was adopted at the time of the Israeli onslaught in Gaza last January. While Al-Jazeera resorted to a language extremely antagonistic to the Israeli atrocities, Qatar helped the US send weapons to Israel via Al Udeid base. The Jewish State, therefore, was able to go on with wreaking havoc and inflicting destruction on the Palestinians.

Moreover, Qatar was exempted from US pressures to halt financial support to organisations and military groups supposedly falling within the framework of the "war on terror". Surprisingly enough, Qatar adopts a harsh-worded langue vis-à-vis Arab countries with diplomatic relations with Israel, although it constantly forges ties -overtly and covertly alike- with the Hebrew State. Furthermore, it has an explanation for the policies it adopts, however inconsistent or contradictory they may be. It claims, therefore, that it displays openness a propos of Israel to enhance peace opportunities. And it tells Palestinian factions- especially Hamas and Jihad-that the relations with Israel are in the interests of the Palestinians-and the two movements believe what it says.

Although a host of Arab nations are aware of the necessity to adopt a decisive stance vis-à-vis Iran, Qatar has a different position. It believes that Iran is now the ascending power in the Gulf area, so it takes the side of the Iranians even when they strive to undermine the influence of a big country like Saudi Arabia.

Following the Israeli aggression on Gaza, Qatar hastened to call for an emergency Arab summit, though without consulting other member states of the Arab League. Moreover, the timing of the summit it proposed was three days before the Kuwait economic summit. Eventually, a summit was held in Doha to be attended by small number of Arab leaders along with the Iranian president. Yet this episode had its good side: it proved that Qatar, on its own, is unable to do much in support of the besieged Gazans.

Finally, one could say that although each country has the right to pursue its interests, this should not take place at the expense of others, particularly if these have unquestionable legacy and weight.
*Assistant manager of Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies