Qatar and Russia eye ‘strategic partnership’

QNA/Moscow
Qatar and Russia have expressed desire to “deepen and diversify” their economic relations, especially in energy and investment sectors, and to raise the level of their ties to that of “strategic partnership”.
HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who is on an official visit to Russia, President Vladimir Putin on Monday held official talks on bilateral co-operation and ways to develop them in different fields.
The talks touched on regional and international developments, especially in the Middle East, and the two countries stances toward them.
They called for reaching a solution to the Syrian crisis, that meets the aspirations of the Syrian people and restores the country’s security and territorial integrity.
The two leaders also reviewed the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and stressed the “urgent need” for a fair settlement based on the two-state solution, based on the resolutions of the United Nations and international law and agreements signed between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.
They stressed “renunciation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and rejection of violence and extremism whatever their origins were”.
They agreed on the importance of freeing the Middle East and the Gulf region of all weapons of mass destruction.
After the talks, President Putin hosted a luncheon banquet at the Kremlin Palace for the Emir and the accompanying official delegation.
Earlier, at the outset of the meeting at the Kremlin Palace, President Putin welcomed the Emir and promised to exert more efforts to enhance bilateral ties, pointing to the pressing need to co-ordinate in the field of energy, particularly gas, as well as to strengthen investment co-operation.
He expressed his hope to reach settlements for crises in the region.
For his part, HH the Emir voiced his pleasure at the visit, thanking President Putin and the Russian government and people for their hospitality.
He highlighted the mutual co-ordination between the two countries in the past years, hoping that it would constitute “a strong basis for moving towards a more progressive phase than before”.
The Emir explained that there were mutual ties in the field of energy and gas, noting that both Qatar and Russia were members of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum and pointing to “positive relations” between Qatar Investment Authority and Russian Direct Investment Fund.
He highlighted Russia’s “vital and significant role” in global stability, saying that the two countries were trying “to find settlements to the problems as far as stability in certain countries of our region is concerned”.
The Emir voiced his confidence that his visit would contribute to promoting bilateral relations and developing co-operation and consultations on different issues and developments in the region.
During the meeting, the Emir and the Russian president discussed a set of regional and international issues of common concern and exchanged points of views towards developments in the Middle East on political and security fronts. They reviewed the situation in Syria, Palestine, Yemen and Libya and agreed to reach settlements that serve stability and security of the region and the safety of its peoples.
In addition, the meeting reviewed ways to promote bilateral relations on all fronts and ways to develop them to serve the mutual interests of the two countries.
The Emir noted that Russia and Qatar had signed a cultural agreement yesterday. "We attach great importance to this area and also seek to develop ties in science and education," the Emir said
Members of the official delegation accompanying HH the Emir attended the meeting. Also present were a number of Russian ministers.