Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Pakistan Prime Minister H E Imran Khan holding discussions at the Amiri Diwan on February 27, 2020.
Pakistan and Qatar enjoy cordial and cooperative relations deeply rooted in common faith, heritage and shared values. They share similar views on various regional and international issues and cooperate at multilateral forums, especially at the UN and the OIC. The biggest influence has been the presence of nearly 185,000 strong Pakistani community that is working in various spheres of Qatar and endeavouring for the progress of Qatar.
There has been an increased warming up of our relations with Qatar in the recent past. Prime Minister Imran Khan paid his maiden official visit to Doha on January 21-22, 2019 at the invitation of His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Amir of Qatar. During the visit, he held meetings with H H the Amir as well as H E the Prime Minister of Qatar. The Prime Minister, during this interaction with renowned Qatari businessmen and investors, invited them to avail conducive trade & investments opportunities in Pakistan.
Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit was reciprocated by the historic visit of the Amir of Qatar His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Pakistan on June 22-23, 2019. His Highness the Amir was received by the Prime Minister, where he was given a 21-gun salute followed by a formal Welcoming Ceremony at the Prime Minister House, where the visiting dignitary was given a tri-services guard of honour. He also witnessed fly past of JF-17 Thunder. His Highness the Amir was also conferred with Pakistan’s highest civil award “Nishan-e-Pakistan” by President of Pakistan Dr. Arif Alvi.
Prime Minister Imran Khan and Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani held one-on-one meeting, followed by delegation-level talks. The talks were marked by exceptional warmth and cordiality. All aspects of bilateral relations came under review. The two leaders reaffirmed the closeness of Pakistan-Qatar fraternal ties and reiterated the resolve to forge a robust political and economic partnership.
Among other things, it was agreed to take steps to significantly increase bilateral trade; expand collaboration in the agriculture and food sectors; enhance cooperation in the energy sector including in the LNG and LPG fields and exploration and production of oil and gas; promote Qatar’s investments in energy, tourism and hospitality industries; increase the number of Pakistani workers employed in Qatar; expand cooperation in the fields of aviation, maritime affairs, higher education, defence and defence production. The two sides also exchanged views on the regional situation and efforts to facilitate the Afghan peace process. During the visit, Pakistan and Qatar signed the following MoUs:
• Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of Pakistan and Qatar Joint Working Group (JG) on Trade and Investment;
• Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the fields of Tourism and Business Events between Government of State of Qatar and Government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan; and
• Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the field of Exchange of Financial Intelligence related to Money Laundering, Associated Predicate Offences and Terrorism Financing between Financial Information Unit of State of Qatar and the Financial Monitoring Unit, in the Government of Pakistan.
Moreover, Prime Minister Imran Khan stopped over at Doha on July 24, 2019 while returning from US. He was welcomed by H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former Prime Minister.
The two sides reaffirmed the resolve to comprehensively upgrade bilateral relations in all fields including trade, investment, energy, aviation, agricultural, tourism, manpower and people to people contacts. The positive contribution of Pakistani community in Qatar was also lauded.
Prime Minister Imran Khan paid an official visit to Qatar on February 27, 2020. The Prime Minister met Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The focus of discussion was strengthening bilateral cooperation and exchanging views on regional developments including the Afghanistan peace agreement, in which Qatar played a crucial role.
Besides this, multiple reciprocal ministerial visits also took place over the last one year. These high-level exchanges of visits have further solidified our bilateral relations with Qatar and have opened new vistas of cooperation. The leadership level interactions of both sides reflect the commitment of both sides to enhance the multifaceted relations between Pakistan and Qatar including trade, investment, energy, aviation, tourism, manpower and people to people contacts.
