Inside Trumps trip to Qatar: Long-time home to Hamas and Americas ultimate frenemy

 When President Trump visits the Middle East this coming week — spending four days in a trio of Arabian Gulf nations — his most controversial stop will be Qatar.Claiming to be America’s friend, yet in intimate contact with America’s enemies, Qatar is what many might call the ultimate “frenemy.” This relationship is as complex as it is consequential.

On one hand, US officials and pundits privately bemoan clear Qatar negatives — such as offering a home to the political leaders of Hamas, its warm ties with Iran, and establishing the frequently anti-American television news network Al Jazeera.  But as in any relationship, the other side often sees things differently.Fueled by billions in gas and oil reserves, Qatar has long-fielded a cadre of diplomats, investors and highly-paid communications consultants to burnish the country’s image as a pro-peace, pro-modernization, pro-moderation force in a region that surely needs more of that. Qatar-affiliated funds have invested more than $40 billion in the US in everything from condo developments to universities, analysts say.

And a handful of US schools, including Northwestern University and Georgetown University, have campuses in Qatar’s skyscraper-filled capital, Doha.It’s investment as influence — and Qatar-critics say it’s paying off. In 2017, Saudi Arabia — which along with the United Arab Emirates will welcome Trump this week — had a major falling-out with Qatar over its ties with Iran and Muslim extremists.

The Saudis mounted an economic blockade of far-smaller Qatar and.Trump took the Saudi side, condemning Doha as a “funder of terrorism” and “radical ideology.”But the blockade ended in early 2021, and the president and senior US officials have changed their tune.

The nation, some say, functions as a kind of Switzerland in the Middle East — a neutral space where foes can settle disputes peacefully.Qatar, for instance, has emerged as a key mediator between Israel and Hama...