| Salwa Canal | |
|---|---|
 The canal would be south of the border between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. | |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 70 [1] km (43 miles) |
| Minimum boat draft | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Status | Abandoned[ citation needed ] |
The Salwa Canal is a proposed shipping route and tourism project through Saudi Arabia along its border with Qatar, effectively turning the latter into an island. The project appears to be abandoned for the present. [2]
In June 2017, Saudi Arabia and a number of countries cut diplomatic relations with Qatar and imposed a land, sea, and air blockade. [1]
The tender was scheduled to take place on 25 June 2018. According to the publication Makkah Al-Mukarramah, the company with the winning bid was to be announced within 90 days of the bid closure date, after which it was to begin digging of the channel immediately in order to complete the project within a one-year time frame. [3]
The proposed waterway is 200 m (660 ft) wide and will be dug to a depth of up to 20 m (66 ft) providing a maximum ship draft of 12 m (39 ft). This would allow the canal to accommodate cargo, container and passenger ships up to a length of 295 m (968 ft). The preliminary cost has been estimated at SR2.8bn (US$747m). [1] The proposal includes building resorts with private beaches, [4] the construction of ports, the possibility of a free trade zone, [1] a military zone, and a dumping ground for nuclear waste. [5]
Saudi media report the project could be completed within 12 months, comparing it to the second, 72 km (45 mi) lane, of the Suez Canal which took about 12 months to finish. [4] However, only half of the distance involved digging new waterways while the remainder was only widening existing channels. [1]
Some media sources seem to prefer a route avoiding maritime boundary passing through Khor Al Adaid, [6] which is a bay and nature reserve also under the Tentative List of the World Heritage Site and mostly shared in a maritime border with Qatar.
Oman is a country on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula, situated in West Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The coast of Oman was an important part in the Omani empire and sultanate.
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The Arabian Canal is a proposed mega-infrastructure project located in the United Arab Emirates that aims to create a man-made waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea.
Salwa is an Arabic word meaning "solace". It may refer to:
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Bilateral relations exist between the State of Qatar and the Kingdom of Bahrain. They first began in 1971.
Abu Samra is a settlement in Qatar, located in the municipality of Al Rayyan. It used to be part of the Jariyan al Batnah municipality before the municipality was incorporated into Al Rayyan.
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The Qatar diplomatic crisis was a high-profile incident involving the deterioration of ties between Qatar and the Arab League between 2017 and 2021. It began when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt simultaneously severed their bilateral relations with Qatar and subsequently banned Qatar-registered aircraft and Qatari ships from utilizing their sovereign territory by air, land, and sea; this involved the Saudis' closure of Qatar's only land crossing, initiating a de facto blockade of the country. Tensions between the two sides came to a close in January 2021, following a resolution between the Saudis and the Qataris.
Saudi Arabia–Qatar relations refers to the current and historical relationship between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the State of Qatar. Prior to 2017, the two countries maintained cordial ties. Qatar was mainly subservient to Saudi Arabia in matters relating to foreign policy. Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani's assumption of power saw Qatar reclaim its sovereignty in foreign affairs, often diverging from Saudi Arabia on many geopolitical issues. In 1996, the Qatari government launched Al Jazeera in a bid to consolidate soft power. One of the most watched news stations in the Arab world, Al Jazeera proved to be a wedge in the two's bilateral relations as it routinely criticized Saudi Arabia's ruler. The network also provided a platform for Islamist groups which are considered a threat to Saudi Arabia's monarchy.
The Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict refers to the ongoing struggle for regional influence between Qatar and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), both of which are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It is sometimes called the New Arab Cold War. Bilateral relations have been especially strained since the beginning of the Arab Spring, that left a power vacuum both states sought to fill, with Qatar being supportive of the revolutionary wave and Saudi Arabia opposing it. Both states are allies of the United States, and have avoided direct conflict with one another.
The Qatar–Saudi Arabia border is 87 km (54 mi) in length and runs from the Gulf of Bahrain coast in the west to the Persian Gulf coast in the east.
