UAE: Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed meets with Prime Minister, FM of Qatar

ABU DHABI: Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, met today with Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdurrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar.

The UAE Top Diplomat arrived today in the Qatari capital, Doha, on a working visit, where he was welcomed upon his arrival at the airport by Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdurrahman bin Jassim Al Thani.

The two ministers discussed fraternal relations between the United Arab Emirates and the State of Qatar and ways to enhance the prospects of bilateral cooperation in all fields in a way that supports the development paths of the two countries and ensures continuing prosperity and progress for their people.

Discussions centred on the impressive development achievements across all fields in both countries, as these advancements serve as a powerful catalyst for the ongoing efforts of the two brotherly nations to achieve sustainable prosperity for their citizens.

His Highness Sheikh Abdullah affirmed during the meeting the strength of the fraternal relations between the UAE and Qatar and the keenness of the two countries to strengthen cooperation to achieve their mutual interests and support their development goals.

The two sides also discussed the latest developments in the Middle East region, especially in the Gaza Strip.

They reviewed the efforts to reach a sustainable ceasefire, especially with the escalating humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and the urgent need to intensify the regional and international efforts made to provide sufficient humanitarian assistance to the brotherly Palestinian people, in a way that would contribute to alleviating their suffering.

They touched on the outcomes of the recent ministerial meeting on the maritime corridor initiative aimed at delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza and the importance of such initiatives in opening humanitarian corridors to transport aid at a sufficient and sustainable pace and without obstacles to civilians in the Gaza Strip.

Sheikh Abdullah pointed out during the meeting that the Middle East region is going through exceptionally difficult circumstances and many challenges that, he stressed, necessitate the need to intensify cooperation and multilateral work at all levels to end extremism, tension and escalating violence in the region and reach a sustainable ceasefire.

He added that a ceasefire, securing the safety of all civilians and bolstering the humanitarian response to the brotherly Palestinian people are urgent priorities.

"To ensure the success of these endeavours, a unified approach combining all available efforts is imperative," Sheikh Abdullah stressed.

He appreciated the continuous efforts made by Qatar to reach a ceasefire that would contribute to meeting the urgent humanitarian needs of civilians in Gaza.

He reiterated the importance of finding a serious political horizon to resume negotiations to achieve a comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution.

The Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar hosted an Iftar banquet in honour of Sheikh Abdullah and his accompanying delegation.

The meeting was attended by Reem bint Ebrahim Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation; Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State; Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, UAE Ambassador to Qatar; and Omran Sharaf, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Advanced Sciences and Technology.

Sheikh Abdullah had left Doha this evening following a working visit and was seen off at the airport by Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdurrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar.