Strengthening relationship between Qatar and the Republic of Tatarstan is vitally important within the two nations’ plans to expand partnerships and investments, particularly in the energy field, as Qatar maintains a privileged standing in oil, gas, and petrochemical markets at regional and global levels. The Republic of Tatarstan is one of the most critical Russian territories that produce oil, gas, and petrochemicals.
In this framework, the visit of President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov to Doha reflects Qatar’s commitment to deepening foreign relations and forging co-operation with a variety of trade partners within the framework of its economic openness, especially with the Republic of Tatarstan, since the latter represents a vital economic destination within the Russian Federation.
During the last decade, the Qatar-Tatarstan relationship has been cemented at multiple levels through shared visits of officials, as well as economic forums that brought the two nations together. The last visit of the president of the Republic of Tatarstan to Doha was in 2022, when President Minnikhanov attended the final match and the opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 tournament.
In December 2015, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani welcomed President Minnikhanov and his accompanying delegation on a work visit, during which bilateral relations and avenues to reinforce and upgrade them were discussed, in addition to discussing a range of topics of common interest.
Qatar participated in the 14th International Economic Forum “Russia the Islamic World: Kazan Forum 2023” held in Kazan City, the Republic of Tatarstan, during May 18-19, 2023, with a delegation led by HE Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Sultan bin Rashid al-Khater.
During his remarks before the forum, HE the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce emphasised that Qatar has been keen to strengthen foreign relations and forge co-operation with a variety of trade partners, particularly the Russian Federation and the Republic of Tatarstan. He noted the strength of the historic and strategic partnership between Qatar and those nations.
Al-Khater commended the depth of relations between Qatar and the Republic of Tatarstan that has numerous investment opportunities and potential that can benefit the Qatari companies, pointing out that the Qatar has succeeded in proceeding with its balanced economic growth, notwithstanding the multiple global evolutions it has witnessed during the past three years.
HE the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce said he hopes the meeting would serve as a catalyst to renew the pledge and continuing the work to invest in the opportunities available, in addition to broadening partnership horizons between Qatar, Russian Federation, and the Republic of Tatarstan in a variety of fields to support the development goals and common aspirations aimed at achieving the sustainable economic prosperity.
HE Sultan bin Rashid al-Khater held bilateral meetings with President Minnikhanov, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade Oleg Korobchenko, and Chief Executive of the Investment Development Agency Taliya Minullina to boost co-operation between the two nations in trade, investment, and industry fields.
He underscored the promising prospects, legislatives, and opportunities available in Qatar, which aim to encourage investors, businessmen, and owners of companies to invest in the country.
HE the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce attended the international exhibition “Russia Halal Expo” and toured the sections of the exhibition held within the framework of the forum during which he was apprised of the services and products provided by the companies and participating institutions.
The forum was held concurrently with the inauguration of Tatarstan Oil and Gas Chemicals Forum held at the Kazan Expo International Exhibition Center, under the patronage of President Minnikhanov. The forum was an effective platform to expand trade co-operation among institutions specialised in energy.
The Kazan Forum 2023 which saw the attendance of roughly 15,000 participants from 85 nations was intended to bolster trade, economic, technological, educational, social, and cultural ties between the territories of the Russian Federation and states of Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC).
About one month later, the forum was followed by the convention of the International Forum of Education Ministers under the theme of “Shaping the Future” in which Qatar participated with a high-ranking delegation led by HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) Buthaina bint Ali al-Jabr al-Nuaimi.
The forum discussed issues of high priority in advancing the education and offering opportunities to share expertise and best practices in the fields of education, technical and vocational training, formulate the orientations of the global vision in building the future, as well as develop digital skills in the pedagogical field in the context of digital transformation.
Addressing the forum, HE the Minister of MoEHE affirmed that education is one of the core pillars of the Qatar National Vision 2030 to build a diverse knowledge-based economy that offers a promising future for citizens through building a global educational system that provides exceptional opportunities for high-quality education and training, in addition to the significance of co-operation and partnership to achieve qualitative education for all.
On the economic side, the relationships between the two countries have been significantly evolving since 2013 when HE the Chairman of the Qatari Businessmen Association (QBA) Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani met with Chief Executive of Tatarstan Investment Development Agency (TIDA) Linar Yakupov and his accompanying delegation to discuss avenues for trade and investment co-operation between the Qatari businessmen and their Tatarstan counterparts, especially in food and agriculture.
HE Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani underscored the interest of Qatari businessmen in capitalising on investment opportunities available in Tatarstan, in addition to establishing projects in a variety of sectors and supporting the co-operation of Qatari businessmen with their Tatarstan counterparts.
Yakupov highlighted that his country had developed medicine and pharmaceutical sectors and focused on optimising IT and communications, as well as halal food industry and sectors of services and tourism. He reviewed the investment prospects his country offers, including the provision of a sophisticated infrastructure, conducive tax policy and the existence of qualified manpower.
In 2015, Qatar Chamber and Tatarstan Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to reinforce co-operation between the two countries. During the meeting, Vice-Chairman of Qatar Chamber Mohamed bin Ahmed bin Twar al-Kuwari said Qatar succeeded in achieving massive development in multiple fields, including trade, oil, industry, and agriculture.
For his part, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade of Tatarstan Albert Karimov said his country appreciates co-operation with representatives of the Qatari private sector, highlighting that the objective of the visit is to apprise the Qatari business community of the potential available in Tatarstan. He affirmed that there is an interest in attracting the Qatari businesspeople to invest in his country, especially in energy, gas, oil, Islamic banking, and tourism fields.
In 2017, a member of the Board of Directors of Qatar Chamber and Honorary Treasurer Eng. Ali Abdul Latif al-Misnad met a delegation commissioned by the president of Tatarstan to discuss the investment opportunities available in Tatarstan, along with the merits it offers to investors, particularly in the fields of agriculture, infrastructure, and sports.
The meeting discussed the possibility of holding a meeting that brings Qatari business owners together with their Tatarstan counterparts to discuss prospects of co-operation between the private sectors in the two nations, as well as the investment opportunities available in the two countries, especially that there is a MoU signed between the chambers of the two countries.
