Qatar renews commitment to combating terrorism

Qatar renewed on Monday its commitment to the fight against terrorism, calling for doing so through prevention and treatment.

Ambassador to Belgium and Permanent Representative of Qatar to the European Union & Nato Abdulrahman bin Mohamed al-Khulaifi made that statement in a Nato meeting that included GCC ambassadors as well as Nato ambassadors.

In the speech, the ambassador reviewed the efforts of Qatar in the fight against terrorism, pointing out that it is an integral part of the global coalition against ISIS.

He added that Qatar hosts the US military base in Al Udeid, from which the country conducts its counter-terrorism operations.

He noted that Qatar is an active member of the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum, which was established in 2011 and consists of 29 countries, in addition the European Union.

He also noted that Qatar signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a centre for the combating terrorist financing operations with the participation of GCC countries and the United States.

Qatar also issued a law to combat terrorism and amended the provisions of other relevant laws in accordance with international laws related to combating terrorism and financing.

It also issued a terrorism list last March that included names and entities against which a final judicial decision was issued.

Al-Khulaifi pointed out that the spread of poverty is a result of the intensification of conflicts in the Middle East region and the transformation of the region into hotbeds of extremism, stressing that the treatment of terrorism and radicalism will only come through solutions of economic nature and by increasing development rates.

He added that the decline in development rates acts as a fertile ground for the emergence of new terrorist groups, considering that military solutions alone will not eliminate terrorism.

He stressed that it would be a mistake to believe that beating ISIS will be the end of all terrorist organisations.

The ambassador stressed the importance of joint action in a flexible and open manner to find innovative and appropriate solutions to achieve peace and security for all.

Al-Khulaifi highlighted the partnership between Qatar and Nato, referring to the visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to Nato last March and the signing of a co-operation agreement between the two sides.

The partnership has developed markedly between both sides since the visit of the His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani to Nato back in 2006.

He also highlighted Doha's hosting the annual Nato conference on arms limitation and non-proliferation in March 2015, as well as the signing of the Individual Partnership and Co-operation Programme between Qatar and the Nato in 2016, in addition to the security agreement signed between the two sides in January 2018.

The ambassador also highlighted Qatar's contribution to peace efforts in Afghanistan and the support to International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).