Qatar moved Sunday to avoid an escalation of its feud with Gulf neighbors by telling their citizens they are welcome to stay, while boasting of "business as usual" for vital gas exports.

Iran also announced it had sent tonnes of vegetables to Qatar, which has seen food imports threatened after its neighbors cut air, sea and land links with the country.

Nearly a week after Saudi Arabia and several of its allies severed ties with Qatar in an unprecedented Gulf diplomatic crisis, there were no signs of the bitter dispute being resolved.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and others accused Qatar of supporting extremist groups, an assertion since backed by US President Donald Trump.

Buildings in Doha, Qatar, June 9, 2017. /VCG Photo

The crisis has raised deep concerns of instability in the region and on Sunday Kuwait's foreign minister said his country would continue efforts to mediate a solution to the crisis.

Qatar strongly rejects the allegations and has said it is open to talks on ending the dispute, which also saw the three Gulf states order all Qatari citizens out of their countries within 14 days.

Qatar said late on Saturday it would not retaliate with such measures of its own.

A statement carried on Qatari state media said Doha would "not take any measures against residents of Qatar who hold the nationalities of countries that severed diplomatic ties... on the back of hostile and tendentious campaigns against the country".

No gas interruption

Despite the unprecedented sanctions, Qatar says that its crucial exports of liquefied gas have not been interrupted.

The Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, run by Qatar Petroleum, 80 kilometers north of the capital Doha, on February 6, 2017. /VCG Photo

"Qatar Petroleum... is conducting business as usual throughout all its upstream, midstream and downstream businesses and operations, and in all activities across all of QP's world-class facilities," the statement said.

Iran sends goods to Qatar

Iran Air spokesman Shahrokh Noushabadi said five planes carrying around 90 tonnes of vegetables each had been sent to Qatar in recent days.

"We will continue deliveries as long as there is demand," Noushabadi added, without saying if the deliveries were commercial exports or aid.

Three ships loaded with 350 tonnes of fruit and vegetables were also set to leave an Iranian port for Qatar, the Tasnim news agency quoted a local official as saying.

Kuwait presses on with efforts 

Kuwait, which has not joined its neighbors against Qatar, has been leading mediation efforts and on Sunday Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled Al-Sabah said that would continue.

File photo of Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled Al-Sabah /VCG Photo

"Kuwait stresses the need for the dispute to be resolved within the Gulf framework," Sheikh Sabah said in a statement quoted by the KUNA news agency.

Qatar has expressed readiness "to understand the concerns of its brothers and respond to the efforts of the emir (of Kuwait) to strengthen peace and security," the foreign minister said.

(Source: AFP)