DOHA: His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani graciously inaugurated the third summit of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), which is being held under the theme 'Sports Diplomacy', on Thursday morning at the Ritz Carlton Hotel - Doha.
The opening was attended by President of the State of Palestine HEMahmoud Abbas, President of the Islamic Republic of IranHEDr Masoud Pezeshkian, President of the Republic of Tajikistan HEEmomali Rahmon, Crown Prince of the State of Kuwait HHSheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court of the United Arab Emirates HHSheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand HEPitongtarn Shinawatra, and a number of Their Highnesses and Excellencies, heads of delegations of sisterly and friendly countries and governments.
The opening was also attended by Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, a number of Their Excellencies the Ministers and heads of diplomatic missions accredited to the State, senior officials and representatives of a number of regional and international organizations.
His Highness the Amir delivered a speech, the text of which is as follows:
"In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Your Excellencies, Highnesses, and Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
May the peace, mercy, and blessings of God be upon you.
At the outset, I am pleased to welcome you to Qatar, wishing you a pleasant stay. I would also like to express my deepest thanks to the sisterly State of Kuwait and the friendly Kingdom of Thailand for their kind hosting of the previous two summits of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue. I also thank the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran for its appreciated efforts during its presidency of the dialogue this year and its keenness to enhance it.
The summit is being held under the theme 'Sports Diplomacy,'which was chosen to express our firm belief that promoting and cooperating on sports is closely aligned with the ACD Vision 2030, and our belief in the importance of sports for the health of individuals and societies, and its role in promoting peace, spreading the values of tolerance and mutual respect, and dispelling stereotypes and preconceived ideas. We look forward to translating this theme into a tangible reality that will reflect positively on our peoples and countries.
Ladies and gentlemen, we believe in the importance of intensifying efforts to contain escalation and tension and stop the bloodshed by resorting to rational dialogue, the rules of international law, the United Nations Charter and international legitimacy resolutions, respecting the sovereignty of states, the unity of their territories and non-interference in their internal affairs in a way that guarantees all countries and peoples the right to live in security, peace and dignity.
This summit is being held amidst challenges and tensions facing the international community, many of whose institutions have been marginalized, and chronic violations and unspoken crimes have made it appear as if it is devoid of international law and its values.
The world is still witnessing a dangerous escalation in the war waged by the Israeli occupation authorities against our Palestinian brothers in the Gaza Strip and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories, and what they are exposed to in terms of targeting defenceless civilians with continuous bombing that has led to the killing of tens of thousands of innocent victims, children, women and men, whose number exceeded 41,000 martyrs, and targeting the headquarters of international organizations and destroying the residential, health and educational infrastructure, and all life facilities. It has become crystal clear that what is happening is genocide in addition to turning the Gaza Strip into an area unfit for human habitation in preparation for displacement.
On this occasion, we renew our rejection and condemnation of the air strikes and escalating military operations launched by the Israeli occupation forces against the sisterly Lebanese Republic recently, which have claimed the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians who are not at fault, and displaced more than a million citizens.
Israel is exploiting the international failure to implement its occupation plans to expand settlements in the West Bank in preparation for annexing it, or at least parts of it. Its rulers also believe that the opportunity is available to implement its plans in Lebanon. The institutions of the international community stand helpless in the face of the dangerous escalation of the Israeli aggression against Lebanon, which is expanding day after day, in flagrant violation of all international norms and laws.
We have previously warned of the consequences of not holding Israel accountable for its crimes against humanity and its refusal to implement international legitimacy resolutions to end the occupation and resolve the Palestinian issue in a just manner. This has made it disregard international law and given its rulers in Palestine and Lebanon a free hand. We call for serious action to stop the firing and attacks carried out by the Israeli occupation on Lebanese territory.
Security will not be achieved without achieving just peace, and this will not be achieved in our region except by establishing an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the borders of June 4, 1967, in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative. The State of Qatar will continue to support the Palestinian cause and its people to obtain all their legitimate rights.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Asian continent occupies an important position from a geopolitical and economic perspective, in addition to its significant influence on global trade as the largest continent containing a strategic energy reserve and hosting global markets and stock exchanges that are the largest of their kind in the world, in addition to its enormous human resources.
In order to make the most of each country’s comparative advantages, we must work to strengthen the interconnectedness between our countries in various fields by identifying common strengths, exploring opportunities and developing proposals aimed at developing our societies.
In conclusion, I would like to thank the General Secretariat for its efforts to reach a final version of the Doha Declaration to be adopted at this summit, and for following up on the implementation of previous dialogue decisions and the good preparation for this summit, which we hope will achieve its desired goals. We also wish the friendly Kingdom of Thailand every success during its presidency of the dialogue next year.
I welcome you again to Doha. May God’s peace, mercy and blessings be upon you."
His Highness the Amir attended the luncheon banquet held for Their Excellencies,Highnesses, the heads of sisterly and friendly states and governments participating in the Third Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit, at the Ritz Carlton Hotel - Doha.
