tag

His Excellency Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates of Egypt Dr. Badr Abdelatty received a copy of the credentials of HE Sheikh Jassim bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Qatar to Egypt.

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei Darussalam met here today with HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi.During the meeting, HE the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs conveyed the greetings of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, to the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, along with His Highness's wishes for Sultan's continued health and happiness, and for the government and people of Brunei Darussalam continued progress and prosperity.For his part, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah entrusted HE the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs to convey his greetings to HH the Amir, wishing him continued health and happiness, and the State of Qatar continued progress, development, and prosperity.Discussion during the meeting focused on the two countries' bilateral relations and ways to strengthen and develop them, in addition to a host of topics of mutual interest.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever gave his deadlocked ruling coalition more time to agree a cost-cutting budget Thursday, staving off fears of an imminent government collapse. The straight-talking Flemish conservative — who only became premier in February after seven months of painstaking negotiations — set a new 50-day deadline to strike a deal. That came after he had sought to pile pressure on his governing partners by dangling the prospect that he could resign over the failure to agree through €10bn ($11bn) of savings by 2030. De Wever — who earlier insisted he wanted to reach an agreement by Thursday — said he had told Belgium's King Philippe he now wanted until Christmas to get there. "I immediately added that this would be the maximum timeframe," De Wever said in an address to parliament. Talks over the new budget have already dragged on for several months, missing a number of self-imposed deadlines. De Wever says the spending cuts are vital to help reduce Belgium's eye-watering national debt, one of the steepest in the European Union. He is calling for a series of "historic" reforms to liberalise Belgium's labour market, curb high unemployment benefits and cut back on pension costs. "Tomorrow's prosperity begins with today's courage. Let's dare to make the reforms that will bear fruit in a few years," De Wever told lawmakers. But trying to get a disparate five-party coalition that includes French-speaking economic liberals and Dutch-speaking socialists to agree on what needs to be done is proving tough. While those on the right are rigidly opposed to hiking taxes, the left is pushing to hit the wealthy harder rather than slash benefits. De Wever, a cat-loving former mayor of Antwerp known for his three-piece suits, is hoping the additional breathing space will pay off and he can solve the deadlock. A long-time proponent of independence for his Flemish-speaking region, he would be loath to relinquish the post of prime minister after years of questing for the top job. The stand-off over the budget comes at a sensitive time for the country, after unexplained drone flights shut down several Belgian airports earlier this week. De Wever chaired an emergency security meeting on Thursday over the incidents, with ministers saying they would look to step up the ability of authorities to monitor drones. As the budget talks consume his attention at home, De Wever is also facing pressure himself on the European stage for holding up a potential mammoth EU loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets. The vast majority of those assets are housed in international deposit organisation Euroclear in Belgium and De Wever has insisted he needs strict guarantees from EU counterparts before giving his green light.

Qatar wants the Palestinian Authority (PA) to be the single agency for the Palestinians to take care of Gaza and the West Bank, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani has said. In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, he said there were ongoing talks between all the Palestinian factions, including the Fatah and the PA, in order to make sure that this is a technocratic committee, it’s apolitical.“It will take care of Gaza in this transition period, and it will be linked somehow to the Palestinian Authority, and once the reforms are in place, the Palestinian Authority should take over the governance in Gaza and the West Bank together.”Regarding the role that the international forces in Gaza should play, HE Sheikh Mohammed observed that “there should be a defined mandate”, and Qatar is working together with the US in order to define that mandate. The role of the international forces should be “securing the Palestinians and the Israelis don’t pose a threat to each other”. At the outset, HE the Prime Minister stated that the “Gaza ceasefire is a very complex deal”. And despite the ceasefire - we had even in the previous ceasefire, which was in January - we had a lot of violations and a lot of Palestinians being killed during that ceasefire.Observing that the violations are happening everyday, he said that Qatar, together with Egypt and the US, are working together very closely in order to make sure that the ceasefire stays intact. Regarding Qatar’s history of successfully mediating international conflicts, HE Sheikh Mohammed was of the view that each country needs to contribute something to the international community. “We found that we are able to convene between conflicted parties and understand the grievances between them, and try to address them step by step. And we’ve built a track record of credibility, honesty and transparency with those parties.That’s what makes Qatar a destination for mediation.” Asked about relations with Iran, HE the Prime Minister pointed out that Qatar shares the largest gas field in the world with Iran. “We would like to see Iran flourishing, developing and prospering and, of course, we don’t want to see an arms race in our region. We don’t want to see a nuclear race in our region. That’s why we’ve been supporting diplomacy all the time, and hoped that Iran reached a deal with the US and the Europeans in order to get its nuclear programme under supervision and to make sure that it’s a peaceful programme.”Describing the US as Qatar’s ally, HE Sheikh Mohammed said the relationship has been developing in a lot of areas, not only in security and defence, but also in energy, economy and education, in many aspects. “When you look at the security guarantees that we got from US, this is a guarantee for the US interest as well, which are in the region, which are in Qatar, either it’s about the air base... where we are hosting more than 10,000 US soldiers.” Also referring to the presence of American universities and energy companies in Qatar, he asserted that the security guarantee is just a demonstration of the strategic relationship with the US.

The Prime Minister of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Dr. Jaafar Hassan, landed in Doha on Monday for the second Global Summit for Social Development, scheduled to take place in Qatar from November 4 to 6.Upon his arrival at Hamad International Airport, Dr. Hassan and his accompanying delegation were welcomed by HE Ibrahim bin Yousef Fakhro, Director of the Protocol Department, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Zaid Mufleh Al Lawzi, Jordan's Ambassador to Qatar.

HE the Minister of Municipality Abdullah bin Hamad bin Abdullah al-Attiyah met Tuesday with a host of fishermen to explore the challenges facing the fishing sector and ways to advance this sector in pursuit of increasing domestic production and achieving self-sufficiency. The ministry highly prioritizes the fishing sector as part of its strategy to achieve sustainable development and is working to execute integrated plans and programs to optimize fishermen's working environment, in addition to having infrastructure and services in place to back these activities, al-Attiyah highlighted. Al-Attiyah further outlined that the ministry has been committed to constantly reaching out to fishermen and listening to their suggestions and feedback onsite to ensure the enforcement of practical solutions that help elevate domestic production efficiency from fish and enhance the quality of national products in alignment with the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030. The meeting was part of a series of the ministry's meetings with a variety of partners in the food security system within an all-hands-on-deck approach that promotes integration between public and private sectors to achieve self-sufficiency from farm, livestock, and seafood products.

HE the Minister of Endowments (Awqaf) and Islamic Affairs Ghanem bin Shaheen al-Ghanem met Sunday with the visiting Syrian Minister of Endowments Mohammad Abu al-Khair Shukri and his accompanying delegation from the Supreme Fatwa Council.The two sides discussed co-operation relations in the fields of endowments and Islamic affairs, and ways to enhance and develop them. They also exchanged views on topics of common interest.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aati held two phone calls on Monday with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, discussing the rapid developments in the Gaza Strip and support for security and stability in the region. During the two phone calls, Abdel Aati stressed the critical importance of both parties to the Sharm el-Sheikh pact adhering to the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. He emphasized that respecting the agreement represents a fundamental step toward consolidating the ceasefire, permanently ending the war, and alleviating the humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip. He also emphasized the need for full access to humanitarian and relief aid to the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The two calls addressed the ongoing preparations for Egypt to host the International Conference on Early Recovery, Reconstruction and Development in Gaza next November. The Egyptian Foreign Minister stressed the importance of beginning the implementation of early recovery and reconstruction plans for Gaza as soon as possible, within the framework of a comprehensive vision that preserves the rights of the Palestinian people, in accordance with the Arab-Islamic Plan for Early Recovery and Reconstruction, and US President Donald Trump's Middle East Peace Plan. In turn, the Danish and French foreign ministers affirmed their full support for Egypt's tireless efforts to promote stability in the region, expressing their aspiration to continue coordination with Egypt on issues related to early recovery and reconstruction in Gaza.

HE the Minister of Municipality Abdullah bin Hamad bin Abdullah al-Attiyah inaugurated Sunday the Qatar International Facility Management Conference and Exhibition (QIFMCE), and the LED Power and Renewable Energy Expo (LEPEX).Organised by the Qatar Society of Engineers, the conference brought together government agencies, national institutions, and companies specialising in facility management and sustainable energy.During the opening, HE al-Attiyah toured the exhibition's pavilions, where he was briefed on the latest innovations and technologies in facility management and renewable energy, including smart lighting technologies and sustainable building solutions, which mark the significant progress Qatar is witnessing in this field.In her opening remarks, Qatar Society of Engineers chair engineer Amna Mohammed al-Naama emphasised that this global engineering event represents an integrated scientific platform that combines engineering thought and technical innovation, enabling the exchange of practical expertise between local and international engineers and experts.She added that the conference aligns with Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030), aiming to develop innovative and sustainable solutions for smart energy and facility management, while enhancing the national capacity to design engineering projects that meet the highest standards of sustainability and efficiency.Al-Naama said that the conference marks the beginning of a new phase of collaborative work.Over the coming days, scientific papers, recommendations, and discussions will lay the foundation for a roadmap to develop the facility management sector across the region.Al-Naama affirmed that the Qatar Society of Engineers will adopt the conference's outcomes and transform them into practical programmes and initiatives aimed at advancing professional practices, preparing national talent, and instilling a culture of innovation and sustainability in engineering workplaces.According to the themes and working sessions of the QIFMCE and the LEPEX, which will run for three days and feature the participation of a select group of experts and specialists from Qatar and abroad, a wide range of vital topics will be discussed that reflect global and local trends in the development of the facility management sector.Among the main topics on the agenda is the role of facility management in achieving QNV 2030.This includes a focus on the integration of facility management with sustainable urban planning, with contributions from chief executives of major real estate companies in Qatar such as Qatari Diar, Barwa, Msheireb Properties, and Al Waab.Other sessions will address the importance of digital transformation in facility management, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve operational efficiency, and evaluating facility readiness for transformation through structural equation modeling.The conference will also tackle legal and regulatory challenges facing the sector, with a dedicated session on discussing new laws and their role in stimulating the facility management sector.Representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Municipality, and the Real Estate Regulatory Authority will also participate in the session.Additionally, topics such as cybersecurity for automated buildings, digital crisis management strategies, and the experiences of GCC countries in enhancing the resilience of critical facility infrastructure will be explored.Another theme is linking engineering performance to the human experience.One session will discuss how facility management can be a driver for enhancing the well-being of individuals in the built environment by improving indoor air quality, implementing sustainable architecture strategies, and connecting technical data to tangible health and psychological outcomes.The conference will also explore sustainability, environmental and social governance, and the role of facility management in supporting smart cities and empowering the national workforce in this vital sector.The participation of experts and specialists from over 11 countries in the conference sessions will add special significance, making it a global platform that brings together engineering thought and technical innovation in the heart of Doha.

HE the Minister of Finance, Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari met separately with the Minister of Finance of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Ahmed Shide; the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Jamshid Kuchkarov; and the Minister of Oil and Gas of the State of Libya, Dr Khalifa Rajab Abdulsadiq.The meetings were held on the margin of the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group, held in Washington, DC. During the meetings, bilateral relations were discussed, areas of joint co-operation were explored, and key economic, investment, and trade developments were discussed, in addition to a number of topics of common interest.

HE the Minister of Finance, Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari met separately with President and Group CEO of Mizuho Financial Group, Masahiro Kihara, and Group Chairman of Standard Chartered, Maria Ramos. The meetings were held on the margin of the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group, held in Washington, DC. Discussions during the meetings, dealt with a host of matters of mutual interest, particularly in the financial and economic fields, in addition to ways to expand efforts for bilateral co-operation. The meetings also explored areas of co-operation, and the most important economic, investment and trade developments.

HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani met Sunday with Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to Qatar Walid Fahmy al-Faqi.The meeting discussed ways to enhance cooperation between the two countries, as well as issues of mutual interest. The ambassador conveyed Egypt's condolences over the death of three members of the Amiri Diwan in a traffic accident in Sharm el-Sheikh while performing their official duties, and wished the injured a speedy recovery.