Amid the furor over Saudi Arabia’s breaking of relations with fellow Gulf state Qatar, I spoke with Monocle 24’s The Briefing on Wednesday.

After setting out the developments, in which Riyadh was joined by other countries in a blockade and isolation of Doha, the discussion considers why both sides may step back from confrontation. It also considers the turmoil in the US position, following Donald Trump’s tweets undermining the American position by accusing Qatar of support for extremism — “his advisors had to get him back on a leash”.

Everyone will get back to the table after this little show of force by Saudi Arabia and its allies.

Listen from 8:39:

TOP PHOTO: Qatar’s Emir Tamim and Saudi King Salman in Riyadh, February 2016