QNA
London
His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Tuesday paid a visit to the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the UK Parliament.
Addressing both Houses of the UK Parliament, HH the Amir expressed his deep thanks and appreciation to the House of Commons Speaker, Lord Speaker, MPs and the friendly British people for the warm welcome and hospitality accorded to His Highness and the accompanying delegation during the visit.
His Highness’ speech started with a highlight of the State of Qatar’s constitutional system update aligning with the country’s traditions and cultural specificity.
Moving to the Qatar-UK relations, HH the Amir said they have been growing and seeing multiple partnerships since both countries marked their first-ever interaction with the 1868 Agreement.
In this regard, His Highness recalled that during a previous visit Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II commended the bilateral relations as those of two long-standing and trusted friends.
The feelings of mutual affection between the two ruling families are manifested in the ties that unite the Qatari and British peoples through education, diplomacy, business, culture and tourism, HH the Amir elaborated.
His Highness also spoke about his educational experience at Sherborne School and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst as an opportunity to build long-lasting friendships and fond memories of training and educational sessions, which in turn inspired ongoing cooperation between the two countries.
This cooperation has been exemplified in the participation of the Qatar Amiri Air Force in the joint Qatar-UK Typhoon squadron, which helped secure the country’s airspace during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, HH the Amir said. His Highness elaborated that a new joint squadron is delivering jet training to Qatari pilots in the new Hawk trainer aircrafts.
This visit will facilitate deliberations to boost military, defense and security cooperation by strengthening defense policies, strategies and practices, in terms of equipment and training, HH the Amir added.
Regarding bilateral collaboration on the state level, HH the Amir said both governments have been cooperating for decades to solve many major global challenges - a particularly important unified approach with the global diplomacy on its last legs.
His Highness highlighted the State of Qatar’s mediation efforts alongside its partners since the first day of the war on the Gaza Strip to stop the violence, release hostages and detainees, and enable a humanitarian aid delivery.
In this respect, His Highness said that further work is still needed, especially in the Gaza Strip, which was almost completely destroyed. Yet, HH the Amir hailed the successes accomplished over the past year.
HH the Amir said the two countries share a position to settle the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution through the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state, regarding the envisioned solution as the path to achieving true peace and coveted prosperity.
Regarding the Qatar-UK strategic investment partnership, HH the Amir underscored his keenness to elevate cooperation, noting that Qatari companies have invested over 100 billion Pounds in the British economy and work to pump billions of dollars annually into the tourism sector.
His Highness also expressed Qatar’s aspiration to increase investment in the areas of infrastructure, science and technology including AI, defense, education and healthcare technology.
Commenting on the bilateral education cooperation, HH the Amir said it catalyzes long-run fruitful relations, especially with tens of thousands of Qatari students having graduated and over three thousand others currently studying at universities across the United Kingdom.
His Highness also hailed the British universities operating in the State of Qatar and offering their programs to students from Qatar and beyond.
In their speeches, Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Lord Speaker, Lord McFall of Alcluith welcomed HH the Amir and the accompanying delegation, stressing the strength of Qatari-British relations and expressing their country’s keenness to consolidate these relations across various fields and aspirations to continue close cooperation on regional security and stability.
HH the Amir is accompanied by Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani and members of the official delegation.