Doha: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani affirmed that Qatar will not hesitate to assist in any mediation efforts to calm conflicts and bring adversaries to the negotiating table, especially between the Taliban movement and the West, and Iran and the West over the nuclear agreement.
In an interview with CNN of the US, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs said that Iran is a neighbour and anything that happens there will certainly affect Qatar and the GCC countries. Qatar is looking forward to seeing an end to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) negotiations by bringing all parties back into a commitment to the JCPOA, which is very important for regional stability.
He stressed that Qatar is making every effort to help bridge the gap between Iran and the US.
On the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, the Foreign Minister underlined that Qatar is against any aggressive act, any threat to use force, or the use of force against any sovereign country, calling for adherence to international law and respecting the UN Charter.
He noted that Qatar maintains communication channels with all parties, as it held talks ten days ago with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation H E Sergey Lavrov, on the Ukrainian crisis, emphasising the need to continue negotiations with the Ukrainian side. Qatar offers its help and support to calm the situation and put an end to this war, he added. The Foreign Minister said that the focus should be on ceasefires, humanitarian corridors, and providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.
H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said that Qatar is not thinking of any new investments there with the current situation until there is more clarity about the stability of the situation and also in some areas in Europe where there are some tensions or political risks.
Regarding the large investment of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) in the Russian oil company Rosneft, the Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that the decision was made based on commercial assessment.
