Qatar, Germany...solid friendly relations based on mutual trust

His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani’s working visit to Germany reflects the strength and distinction of bilateral relations, and the desire and keenness of the two countries to strengthen them in various fields and push them towards broader horizons.During the visit, His Highness discussed with German President Dr Frank Walter Steinmeier, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and a number of senior German officials, ways to develop and strengthen the strong relations between the two friendly countries in various fields, especially political, economic and investment, as well as exchanging views on all regional and international situations of common interest.The Amir’s visit will contribute to supporting and strengthening bilateral relations, deepening the investment partnership, and increasing the volume of trade and economic exchange between Doha and Berlin to meet the interests and aspirations of the two countries and their two friendly peoples.The two countries enjoy strong, well-established and rooted friendship and partnership relations based on mutual trust and common interests, spanning decades of co-operation in the political, economic, trade and investment fields.There is an ongoing dialogue and permanent consultation between the two sides regarding political co-ordination regarding regional issues and hot international files.Qatar is an important partner for Germany in the Middle East and North Africa, based on more than 60 years of trade relations and nearly half a century of political and diplomatic relations, which have left a good impact on the hearts of the two friendly peoples.These relations have also grown significantly over the past years, and nowadays cover a wide range of commercial, cultural, sports, scientific and political fields, while German delegations in various fields visit Doha periodically in order to increase co-ordination and cooperation in all disciplines and sectors.His Highness the Amir met at the Amiri Diwan Office last month with Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action of the Federal Republic of Germany Dr Robert Habeck and his accompanying delegation on their visit to the country.During the meeting, they reviewed bilateral relations and ways to enhance and develop them in various fields, especially in the field of energy, in addition to the latest developments on the regional and international arenas.Dr Habeck affirmed that his visit to Qatar and the German delegation, which includes an elite group of representatives of companies operating in the oil and gas sector, aims to discuss prospects for cooperation and long-term partnership with Qatari companies.The two countries have partnership agreements in many fields, such as science, education, technical training, research and development, new and renewable technologies, and others.Diplomatic relations were established between Qatar and Germany in 1973.These relations were strengthened through mutual visits at the highest levels in the two countries.Germany is a strategic partner to Qatar and an important destination for Qatari investments, which amounted to about 25bn euros, and include vital projects in the automotive, information technology and banking sectors.The pace of these investments increased, especially after the historic visit of His Highness the Amir to Germany in 2018, during which His Highness announced the intention of Qatar to inject investments worth 10bn euros into the German economy over the next five years until 2023, which reflects the depth and strength of bilateral relations at all levels. The volume of trade exchange between Qatar and Germany doubled, and exceeded the $3bn mark in 2021, compared to $1.7bn in 2020, a growth of 76%, which makes Germany one of Qatar’s most important trading partners.German companies play an important role in the development of the Qatari economy.The number of these companies has reached more than 300 companies operating in vital sectors such as energy, construction, infrastructure, railway development, trade, contracting, services, communications, roads, devices, medical equipment and other fields.The development projects in Qatar provide great opportunities for German companies to increase their contribution to the development of the Qatari economy in other sectors.Qatar has worked, based on Qatar National Vision 2030, to provide an appropriate investment climate, through a series of laws and legislations that attract investment, as well as the political and social stability that the country enjoys, and its strong and balanced relations with all parties, in addition to its distinguished geographical location, which enabled Qatar to become an important financial centre in the region that competes with the best global and regional financial centres.Germany shares extensive borders with nine other countries, eight of which are members of the European Union.Germany belongs to the most developed and strongest performing country in the industrialised world. After the United States, Japan and China, it is the fourth largest economy in the world and the largest and most important market in the European Union, with a population of more than 82mn.The German economy is focused on industrial products and services. German machinery, cars and chemical products enjoy an outstanding global reputation.Because of its great orientation towards exports, Germany is considered one of the most interconnected countries in the world and intertwined with the global economy. Exports of goods and services contribute to achieving more than a quarter of German income, and more than a fifth of job opportunities there depend on exports.In 2009, with exports of $1,121bn, Germany ranked second in the world after China. The Asian continent is the second most important market for sales of German products, and China is the most important trading partner. Germany, in turn, is the largest European investor for China since 1999, with about 2,500 German companies investing in various Chinese sectors.