Beirut / Information Office / April 16

HE Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Lebanese Republic

Mohammed bin Hassan Al Jaber said the State of Qatar exceeded the effects of the blockade adding "our sovereignty is a line that must not be crossed."

In an interview with the U.S. newspaper, the Parliament, HE the ambassador said "the Gulf is relying on fueling the crisis in order to confiscate Qatar's sovereignty along with its freedom of expression. This was made clear from the list of demands that it put forth, which is unacceptable to us, and our sovereignty is a line that must not be crossed."

His Excellency added, "we have been, since the beginning, trying to solve the issue through a dialogue that is founded on mutual respect, and we supported the generous mediation of Kuwait's prince, and we still strongly believe that a dialogue built on mutual respect can put an end to this conflict."

"Qatar exceeded the effects of the blockade, its economic immunity was strengthened against foreign obstacles, its reliance on itself was fortified, and its ties with its allies is more stable now than it ever was," HE the ambassador said.

His Excellency said that for many years, Qatar put forth self-reliance and economic openness as two strategic options when facing different regional and international challenges, which contributed to consolidating local industries and to strengthening Qatar's status as pivotal in trade.

HE the ambassador noted that Qatar's international and regional relations get stronger, due to the politics of openness that the country follows under the wise rule of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani. This was evident in the wide participation of more than 160 countries in the 140th General Assembly meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which Qatar hosted, which indicates the latest proof of the robustness and power of Qatar's international and regional relations, His Excellency added.

HE the ambassador said that these strong relations have a positive impact on Qatar's politics in the Middle East, which includes advocating the issues of the people and achieving their legitimate ambitions of freedom and dignity.

Qatar is making efforts that contribute to the international community's peace and stability in the Middle East, which has been seeing consecutive wars for many decades, due to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the wars in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Libya, he stressed.

His Excellency added that Qatar always placed the Palestinian issue as a top priority and has expressed through different regional and international platforms its strong and supportive stance towards the Palestinians and their legitimate right to an independent state on the 1967 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital.

Concerning Libya, which is currently witnessing a dangerous military escalation, Qatar rushed to call on all parties involved in the conflict to remind them of their historical responsibilities towards the Libyan people whose hopes rely on a peaceful resolution and also to resort to national dialogue over military choices, along with placing the interests of Libya, His Excellency said.

HE the ambassador said that this stance is an extension of Qatar's previous calls on all parties of the Libyan people to achieve national reconciliation, to build the nation and its institutions, to put an end to the suffering of the Libyan people, and to ensure its safety and stability.

As for Yemen, since the beginning of the war, Qatar expressed its keenness on the stability, peace, and unity of the country, and it called on all sides to cease fighting and to resort to dialogue to solve the issue politically, based on related Security Council decisions, the Gulf's initiatives, and the outputs of national dialogue, HE the ambassador pointed out.

Regarding Syria, HE the ambassador said that Qatar has maintained its conviction that Syria must remain a united country ever since the beginning of the conflict, where it supported many regional and international efforts to ensure the success of a political resolution that helps Syria out of its conflict, and which respond to the Syrians' ambitions of freedom, justice, security, and stability, based on the Geneva Declaration.