DUBAI, United Arab Emirates _ Qatar's Wednesday deadline to comply with a Saudi-led bloc's conditions for ending the monthlong Persian Gulf crisis won't be extended, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said.
Qatar submitted its response to the coalition's 13 demands Monday, but no details have emerged. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir said later that the coalition will study the reply carefully before responding.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and transport links with Qatar last month, claiming that it supports terrorism and meddles in their internal affairs. Qatar denies the charges and has said the demands were deliberately made so steep that they would be rejected.
The conditions include cutting ties with the Muslim Brotherhood, scaling back ties with Iran, shutting the Al Jazeera television station and ending Turkey's military presence in Qatar.
The deadline was initially set for Monday but was extended by 48 hours at the request of Kuwait, which is trying to mediate an end to the dispute.
Jubeir, striking a more conciliatory tone than he's ordinarily taken during the crisis, said his country sees Qatar as a friendly nation that has made some progress, but not enough. Anwar Gargash, the U.A.E.'s minister of state for foreign affairs, said on Twitter that the region is at a "historical crossroads" and must either protect its unity or "go our separate ways."
