Luis Ayllón
The new ambassador of Qatar in Spain, Salem bin Mubarak Al Shafi, has presented the Copies of his Letters of Credence, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, days before the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed Abdulrahman Al Thani , visit our country.
Salem Al Shafi presented the Copies to the introducer of ambassadors, María Sebastián de Erice, on the 14th, and replaces Abdalla Al-Hamar in office. He has an extensive diplomatic career and was Qatar’s ambassador to Egypt between 2021 and 2023. Previously, he headed the Embassies in Turkey and Canada, and was also stationed in New York and Geneva.
The new ambassador already carried out his duties this Thursday, receiving the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, who is visiting Spain to launch the strategic dialogue mechanism between the two countries, an annual meeting at the level of ministers of Foreign Affairs with inter-ministerial participation, which was agreed during the visit that the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, made to Doha last April.
Al Thani will be received today by King Felipe VI, by the President of the Government and by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, with whom he will speak about “issues of common interest” and the strengthening of bilateral collaboration in strategic areas, as reported. the Qatari Embassy in a press release.
In addition, the Qatari prime minister will also participate today in a round table organized by the CEOE together with its counterpart, the Qatari Business Association (QBA), with prominent Spanish companies, a meeting that “will provide a platform to explore investment opportunities and economic cooperation between both countries.”
The visit marks the official beginning of the strategic dialogue between Qatar and Spain. During the last visit to Spain by Emir Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, in May 2022, the two countries raised the level of their diplomatic relations and an investment of 5 billion euros by Qatar in Spain was announced.
According to a statement from the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Albares will chair the political session during a lunch with the prime minister. The session – the text adds – will allow us to analyze the state of the bilateral relationship, as well as the regional and international reality and is expected to conclude with a Joint Declaration
Likewise, it indicates that at the bilateral level, in the area of Trade and Investment, the main objective is to provide political support to the negotiation of the APPRI (Agreement for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments) and, above all, to advance in the creation of investment instruments. Other aspects that will be addressed in the sectoral meetings of the Strategic Dialogue include aspects related to Defense, Security and Justice, Innovation, Education and Culture.
This will be the fifth meeting between Albares and his Qatari colleague with whom he last met on May 29 in Madrid, during the visit of the Follow-up Committee of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Gaza. Previously, the Spanish minister was in Doha on February 6 where he was also received by the country’s main authorities, including the Emir of the State of Qatar, His Royal Highness, Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.
