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Ailyn Agonia
Doha
AMBASSADOR of France to Qatar HE Eric Chevallier described the recently concluded official visit of the Amir His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani to France as successful, very positive and provides additional 'personal touch' to the strategic and long-term relationship of the two countries.
Speaking to the local media at the French Embassy Doha on Monday, Ambassador Chevallier said while the agreements signed during the two-day visit were welcome and important additions to the slew of agreements signed six months ago between the two countries, the heart of the recent visit was the emphasis on further deepening the relationship between Qatar and France.
"It was a successful visit. There were very positive discussions between the two heads of states and the spirit is very positive. The visit shows the personal relationship between the two countries that can be established for the long term. In addition, I was really impressed how the two leaders described the relationship as reliable and strategic. This is the heart of the message of the visit and how HH the Amir was received in France to reiterate the importance of the relationship for many reasons such as the partnership on the fight against terrorism and financing of terrorism, the partnership of trying to find solution to the many crises in the region and also for economic reasons," the Ambassador said.
He underscored that the three main agreements signed between Qatar and France are not only important but also practical and positively impact the daily lives of people in both countries.
"The agreement signed on mutual recognition of driving licenses seems to be trivial but it is very important and many French citizens as well as French companies bringing highly-skilled expatriates to Qatar are saying this has been an issue for them. This can also benefit Qataris residing in France. Another agreement on food security is important to Qatar as part of their National Vision 2030 and in reference to the current crisis. France has a very advanced and innovative agriculture and agro-industry. The third main agreement signed was between Qatar University and a French university with expertise on cybersecurity," said Chevallier.
On the agreement in food security, the French official further said that this is his country's concrete way of responding to the consequences of the blockade on which the French government, from the onset of the crisis, has taken a clear position calling for the lifting of the blockade and immediate end to the human consequences of the situation. The same position was reiterated by French President HE Emmanuel Macron during HH the Amir's visit.
Apart from the main agreements signed between the two countries, the Ambassador also reiterated the important discussions of the two heads of states with regards to sports in view of Qatar's preparations to host FIFA World Cup 2022 and France as host of 2024 Summer Olympics. According to the Ambassador, the emphasis of the discussions was on how the two countries can support each other and share expertise in hosting major sports event as well as ensuring long lasting legacy which has been at the forefront of Qatar's preparations for bringing the FIFA World Cup for the first time in the Middle East.
"Football was discussed at length during the meetings. It was discussed also in terms of what we can do together with regards to big sports event and how we can develop our exchange of expertise in this regard. We already had an agreement signed in 2015. Since then, we developed several partnerships such as ensuring security during big events which is extremely important. With Paris hosting the 2024 Olympics, now we have even more reasons to share experience and also on one specific issue which is the legacy. We all know how Qatar wants to really put an emphasis on the legacy and this is also important for France to have a long lasting, positive impact both on the local community where the event was organised, and also broadly on the international community," he said.
The Ambassador also said the partnership between Aspire and Aspetar with its French counterpart called 'INSEP' is part of the discussions on sports cooperation between Qatar and France.
