 In late April 2017, Charles Kushner met with Qatari Finance Minister Ali Sharif Al Emadi at the St. Regis New York.Reports of the meeting first surfaced on investigative reporting website "The Intercept" in March 2018, which reported that Charles Kushner arranged the meeting in an attempt to secure funding for the new tower from Qatar's sovereign wealth fund but that Emadi declined to provide any financing.The outlet also highlighted the controversial timing of the meeting, which came roughly one month before the Qatar diplomatic crisis began.