Belgian diplomat Didier Reynders met with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.

:: Belgium stressed on the need for a mechanism to ensure the “transparency of financial flows” to religious institutions in a meeting between Belgian and Qatari foreign ministers on Friday.

Belgian diplomat Didier Reynders met with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani to discuss the Gulf crisis which has seen Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and Egypt cut diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar since June.

The four Arab states accuse Doha of supporting Islamist militants and financing terrorism in the region, allegations that Qatar denies.

In an official statement, Reynders said Belgium “welcomes any initiative to combat terrorism and its financing, but that it is necessary to encourage all concerned parties [in the Gulf crisis] to intensify their efforts in this field.

“It is important to distinguish, on the one hand, the financing of Islamic worship, educational centers and mosques for Muslim communities in European countries, and, on the other hand, the financing of terrorist activities. Belgium and Qatar wish to establish a bilateral mechanism to ensure the transparency of financial flows to religious institutions, in accordance with Belgian and European laws.”