Bahrain's emir said on Monday he wanted good relations with Qatar despite a long-running territorial dispute between the two Gulf Arab states that flared earlier this year, reported Reuters, quoting Bahrain's GNA news agency.
"Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa stressed Bahrain's honest desire to extend bridges of closeness and cooperation and unity to the brothers in Qatar," GNA said.
"We never wanted this dispute to occur," Sheikh Hamad told a public gathering in the capital.
Bahrain and Qatar have long argued over the sovereignty of the small but potentially oil- and gas-rich Hawar islands controlled by Bahrain since the 1930s but also claimed by Qatar, said Reuters.
Fresh tensions emerged in May after Bahrain suspended bilateral talks, saying Qatar had failed to respond to its proposals.
The dispute went before the International Court of Justice in The Hague at the end of May, said the agency - Albawaba.com
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