Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates are suspending their boycott of Qatar. The announcement comes after months of heavy lobbying from the Trump administration and, in particular, Jared Kushner. That said, the deep tensions within the Gulf Cooperation Council aren’t going away. I also think it unlikely that Qatar will recognize Israel in the near future.

As of Monday evening, the UAE and Bahrain will open their waters and airspace to Qatari transit. Saudi Arabia will also reopen its land border with Qatar. In return for this border reopening after nearly four years of closure, Qatar is expected to pursue more open-minded engagement with the Saudi-led bloc on its concerns. Washington hopes this process will build trust toward greater Sunni Arab cooperation on matters of regional political and security concern. At the very least, this reengagement offers confidence that relations won’t get any worse.