Over a decade ago, Qatar was labeled a “frenemy” of the United States during a U.S. Congressional hearing. Developments in the Middle East since then have brought into focus Qatar’s role as a destabilizing and hostile force towards American interests. Yet despite its open support for Hamas and radical Islamist organizations, Qatar enjoys close relations with the U.S. and faces no consequences for undermining its supposed ally.
In 2022, President Biden granted Qatar the status of a Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA). This designation opens the door for Qatar to access advanced American weaponry and military equipment under favorable terms as well as participate in joint exercises that strengthen its military power, while integrating the standards of the world’s superpower. Economically, Qatar benefits from collaboration with U.S. companies and from preferential access to security resources, which increases its influence in the Arab world.
The MNNA status is the highpoint of decades of military and economic cooperation between the U.S. and Qatar. In 1992, the emirate signed a bilateral security agreement with the U.S., allowing American military access to bases in Qatar and the storage of military equipment, in return for training the Qatari army. Between 1992 and 2021, the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar served as one of the most important American bases outside the U.S. When U.S. forces were obliged to withdraw from Saudi Arabia before the Iraqi invasion, they relocated to Qatar. Today, Qatar hosts the U.S. Air Forces Central Command at Al Udeid, the largest American base in the Middle East.
Alongside such military cooperation with the U.S., Qatar has not hesitated to support Washington’s enemies, using Al Udeid as a shield against criticism. A notable example is the case of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the architects of the 9/11 attacks: after the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Qatar gave him safe haven, and when American agents closed in on him in 1996, he escaped within hours—likely with local assistance. Five years later, he was revealed to have played a central role in one of the most devastating terror attacks in U.S. history.
H.R. McMaster, former National Security Advisor during Trump’s first term, described in his book At War with Ourselves how Trump understood Qatar’s role in funding terror organizations worldwide and demanded that the Emir halt such support immediately. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who has close business ties to Qatar as former ExxonMobil CEO, managed to persuade Trump to adopt a more conciliatory stance toward the emirate.
In 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice ordered AJ+, a subsidiary of Al Jazeera controlled by the Qatari royal family, to register as a foreign agent. According to the DOJ, Qatar funds the network, appoints its board members, and aims its broadcast at influencing American public opinion in favor of a foreign country. Recently, Fox News revealed that Qatar had hired a company led by a former CIA agent to spy on U.S. senators and congressmen who promoted legislation against Qatar, such as Ted Cruz. Consequently, U.S. lawmakers demanded that Al Jazeera staff, as participants in an espionage operation, be denied access to Congress. In 2017, Al Jazeera hired an undercover journalist to secretly record Jewish activists in order to promote antisemitic theories about dual loyalty and Jewish betrayal of the U.S. Despite the DOJ’s letter, Al Jazeera and AJ+ have never registered as foreign agents.
Qatar acts as patron to Islamist organizations around the world, many of which cause harm to American soldiers and civilians. The September 2012 murder of the U.S. Ambassador to Libya in Benghazi was carried out by al-Qaeda affiliate, Ansar al-Sharia (AAS), which received Qatari support. Along with Turkey, Qatar backs the Islamist government in Tripoli against the secular regime in Benghazi. Reports indicate that the Qatari royal family has funneled money and weapons to the terrorist organization Hezbollah since 2017, and even bribed a security contractor to keep quiet when he discovered the fact. In 2021, the U.S. State Department began investigating Israeli claims that Qatar funded Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). In November 2023, the MEMRI Institute exposed a top-secret document from Qatar’s Finance Minister to the Emir detailing the millions transferred to Islamist terrorist groups in Mali and the Sahel. French journalists have previously reported on Qatari funding for terrorist organizations in Africa. And of course, Qatar has also transferred millions to Hamas, the terrorist organization that murdered, tortured, and kidnapped American citizens on October 7.
None of this has prevented Qatar from enjoying close relations with and special privileges from the United States. In September 2024, the U.S. administration granted Qatari citizens visa-free access to the U.S., despite the fact that its decisive role in financing Hamas, promoting its narrative, and hosting senior Hamas leaders in Doha had become clear. In August 2024, the Biden administration signed a bilateral agreement with Qatar to cooperate on counterterrorism – even as Qatar continues to fund terrorist groups throughout the Middle East.
This agreement is a perfect illustration of Qatar’s MO: stoking fires while pretending to be a valuable and indispensable firefighter.
Qatar continues to enjoy the best of both worlds: reaping the benefits of a strategic alliance with the U.S.—from Al Udeid to MNNA status to visa waivers—while simultaneously funding terrorist organizations like Hamas, Hezbollah, and al-Qaeda that directly harm U.S. interests and American lives. This contradiction is not just a case of duplicitous diplomacy; it reveals a fundamental flaw in the U.S. approach, which grants privileges to a nation that undermines the foundations of its security. If Washington wants to maintain its moral and strategic leadership, it must stop showering Qatar with benefits and demand a clear commitment to stop the double game and choose: friend or enemy.
First published in Hebrew in Makor Rishon
