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Satyendra Pathak
Doha
Qatar wants resumption of negotiations for free trade agreement (FTA) between Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and European Union (EU), Qatar Chamber Vice-Chairman Mohammed bin Ahmed bin Towar al Kuwari said on Monday.
Addressing a meeting between the members of a large EU trade delegation and Qatari businessmen in Doha, Kuwari said that the GCC leadership was keen on finding a common ground to resume the negotiations for the benefit of the two economic blocks.
EU and GCC entered into negotiations for a free trade agreement in 1998. Formal negotiations were held on and off, before they were finally suspended in 2008.
While informal talks have since taken place, the agreement has not yet been signed.
Kuwari said that GCC was willing to take part in negotiations to pass the agreement.
Highlighting the growing trade volume between Qatar and EU countries, Kuwari said,"Qatar-EU economic and trade relations are strong and growing rapidly in all economic sectors. Strong and stable political relations between the two sides have taken economic cooperation and trade ties to higher levels."
The trade volume between Qatar and EU countries reached $18.1 billion in 2015, he said adding that Qatar was willing to enhance the volume in the years to come.
"EU is a strategic and a very important trade partner for Qatar. It is a union with an economic clout to make a real difference on global issues," he said.
Seeking the expertise of European countries in Qatar's preparation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and realising the goals of Qatar National Vision 2030, he said,"Mega projects are being implemented for developing Qatar's infrastructure to prepare the country for hosting 2022 World Cup.
"This has attracted businessmen from across the world to come and invest in Qatar and at the same time it opens the door for Qatari businessmen to exchange experience and build real partnerships with foreign counterparts. We invite EU companies and investors to expand their businesses in Qatar in all sectors by establishing real partnerships with local businessmen."
"Hundreds of European companies are already operating in Qatar and are contributing to the country's comprehensive growth," he said.
On the other hand, he said, there were numerous Qatari investments in Europe."Qataris are investing heavily in Europe. EU is an ideal destination for our investments. Qatari businessmen are keen to explore new horizons of investments in Europe," he said.
Talking to Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of the meeting, EU Trade Section Head Lucie Burger said that representatives of around 200 companies from 16 EU countries interacted with Qatari businessmen during the meeting.
"We hope that the meeting will lead to many agreements between Qatari and EU companies," Burger said.
French Ambassador to Qatar HE Eric Chevallier, who also attended the meeting, said,"EU with a consumer base of 600 million is a very big market in the world. Both GCC and EU can benefit from enhanced partnership in new areas."
