The Diplomat
The Emir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, assured yesterday the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, that his country will help Spain in the evacuation of Afghan collaborators.
Albares paid an official visit to Doha yesterday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan and the local collaborators who were unable to leave the Central Asian country during the first phase of the evacuation, which ended at the end of August. Qatar, which maintains dialogue with the Taliban, has been involved in the reconstruction of Kabul airport after the August 26 attacks by the local branch of Daesh, which allowed the resumption of international flights to Doha on September 9.
Albares’ visit to Qatar began with a meeting with representatives of Spanish companies based in the Emirate, with whom he analyzed “the investment climate and their projects for which they have the support of the Government”, as reported by the minister through his Twitter account.
Later he was received in audience by the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who guaranteed “all the support of Qatar to ensure that our collaborators can leave in the shortest possible time in the safest way”, Albares told Efe agency, without further details.
The day continued with a meeting with the Vice President and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, to address political, economic and geostrategic issues of interest to Spain and Qatar. In the press conference that followed, Albares assured that both had talked about the improvement of economic relations with the Emirate, “one of the largest foreign investors in Spain and with which we collaborate in many areas: trade, multilateral affairs, culture and sports”. However, “much more can still be done”, especially “within the framework of the new recovery plan for the Spanish economy”, added the minister, who expressed his wish “to be able to receive His Highness the Emir in Spain soon”.
“Qatar plays a “fundamental role in the stability of Afghanistan and in the evacuation of the airport”, the minister continued. “One of the main objectives of my visit is to explore ways to work closely together in this new phase and to address in depth the situation in Afghanistan”, he assured. “We are firmly committed to the Afghan people and to the region” and, therefore, “Spain strongly defends the need to protect human rights and the achievements of the last twenty years, in particular those of women and girls”, Albares added. “We trust in Qatar’s role in helping us to stabilize this country”, continued the minister, who assured that Spain “is not going to recognize the Afghan government or have political contacts with it, although if it is necessary, at a given moment, to maintain operational contacts so that the evacuation can take place, we will do so”.
For his part, the Qatari vice-president (who has just returned from Kabul after one of the first visits by a foreign foreign minister to Afghanistan since the Taliban victory) called for “no politicization” of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, because “the Afghan people need it”. He also called for “a unified international position on Afghanistan, especially with regard to humanitarian aid”, and urged the international community “not to isolate Afghanistan because of the Taliban coming to power”.
The Minister’s day concluded with a meeting with Qatari businessmen, including the CEO of the sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority, Mansoor Bin Ebrahim Al Mahmoud, and the President of the Qatar Businessmen’s Association, Sheikh Faisal Al Thani, who expressed their interest in studying new investments in Spain within the framework of the Government’s recovery plan.
