A spokesman for Germany's government says Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz will not attend the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Hamburg, Germany on July 7-8.
The spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said on July 3 that the Saudi government had notified Berlin that the 81-year-old monarch would not participate in the annual G20 meeting.
Seibert did not provide a reason for King Salman's cancellation.
But Saudi diplomatic sources told dpa on July 3 that the cancellation was linked to Saudi Arabia's dispute with Qatar.
In June, Saudi Arabia led its neighbors Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt in cutting ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism.
They are demanding that Doha end its support for the Muslim Brotherhood, shut down the Doha-based satellite television broadcaster Al-Jazeera, downgrade diplomatic ties with Iran, and close a Turkish military base in Qatar.
Saudi Finance Minister Muhammad al-Jadaan will attend the G20 summit in place of King Salman.