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In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

May God's peace, mercy, and blessings be upon you,

First, I would like to extend a warm welcome to my friend, Mr. David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary of the friendly United Kingdom, in Doha to convene the Second Qatari-UK Strategic Dialogue.

Your Excellency, since the convening of the first Strategic Dialogue, the Qatari-British partnership has witnessed intensive efforts to deepen cooperation across various levels, where the visit of His Highness the Amir of the State to London last December represented a historic milestone in the progress of relations between our two friendly nations, during which we reaffirmed our commitment to strengthening the strong and historic bilateral partnership between the two countries.

The launch of the Second Strategic Dialogue today, under the theme “Partners for the Future”, represents another milestone in advancing the partnership between the State of Qatar and the United Kingdom. It also reaffirms our ongoing commitment to further strengthening cooperation across various sectors, including economy, trade, investment, defense, security, and collaboration in counter-terrorism efforts.

Under the framework of our strategic dialogue, 8 joint working groups are convening today to develop practical steps towards achieving the shared aspirations of both countries.

We are pleased to witness the launch of a working group in the field of technology, science, and innovation, as well as a working group in the field of health, reflecting the prospects available to advance the current cooperation between the State of Qatar and the United Kingdom in the areas of modern technology, artificial intelligence, and future opportunities, including their role in supporting healthcare applications and health data.

The prosperous future is a motto we all stand behind. Undoubtedly, the State of Qatar and the United Kingdom share a vital and thriving economic, trade, and investment partnership, which stands as a landmark we take pride in within our strategic collaboration.

The State of Qatar invests over 40 billion pounds sterling in the British economy, contributing to job creation, fostering growth and prosperity in the United Kingdom, while generating returns for the Qatari sovereign wealth fund to secure the future of upcoming generations in Qatar. The volume of trade exchange between the two countries exceeded 1.6 billion pounds sterling in the year 2024.

The State of Qatar continues to play a pivotal role among major global investors in the United Kingdom, being the primary partner of leading British companies. We regard the United Kingdom as one of our most significant investment partners, with a proven track record of success in key investment areas.

Our investments also contribute to supporting the growth of the British economy and its projects, increasing employment opportunities, fostering innovation, and promoting economic development in our two friendly nations, particularly in the fields of science, technology, sustainability, climate change adaptation, and digital advancement.

Your Excellency, this partnership is a strong testament to the shared commitment to creating prosperity and a bright future for our two friendly peoples.

Despite the distances that separate us, there is undoubtedly something unique about the relationship between our two friendly nations.

Whether it pertains to the thousands of Qatari students who have benefited from education in British schools, colleges, and universities, or the tens of thousands of British citizens in Qatar who work alongside us to achieve our national goals and aspirations, goodwill and dynamism remain at the core of this relationship.

Our joint efforts to expand this cooperation, particularly in the fields of education, culture, heritage, sports, health, research, and innovation—including genomics—have reaffirmed this bond, alongside our well-established traditions of cultural partnerships.

Your Excellency, our partnership has become more significant than ever in light of the major risks and the ongoing and escalating tensions that threaten international security. In strengthening this partnership and within the framework of our strategic dialogue today, we announce the signing of a Letter of Intent for cooperation in the fields of peace, reconciliation, and conflict resolution, which will enhance technical collaboration with a view to developing capacities in this domain, and supporting our international efforts to promote peace.

We also convened the inaugural Qatar-UK Development Taskforce to build upon joint efforts in addressing humanitarian challenges, global health, and fostering joint development initiatives, in light of doubling the Co-Funding Initiative for Financing Development Cooperation to $100 million.

We will work on exploring joint programs in priority areas, including but not limited to: the Gaza Strip, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, and Bangladesh.

However, the risks today are higher than ever before. The escalation, aggression, and ongoing Israeli siege on the occupied Palestinian territories and the Gaza Strip, along with the continued politicization of humanitarian aid, targeting of humanitarian workers, and the use of hunger as a tool for collective punishment, place our entire region on the brink of catastrophe.

This represents a challenge to our humanity, and leaving it unaccounted for is an open invitation to those who may be tempted to employ such inhumane methods to impose political will upon any nation striving for its freedom.

We hereby affirm our unwavering commitment to working towards de-escalation of tensions, urging Israel to cease obstructing the entry of humanitarian aid, and tirelessly supporting all efforts aimed at resolving disputes through dialogue and negotiation.

Today, Your Excellency, we witness positive developments in Syria, represented by the reconstruction of a state devastated by war, and opportunities for peace supported by negotiations between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran mediated by Oman. Furthermore, not to mention the ongoing negotiations concerning peace in Ukraine, alongside other international efforts aimed at realizing humanity's aspiration for a just and lasting peace for our peoples.

We remain committed to supporting these efforts as we witness other crises with escalating humanitarian repercussions, foremost among them being the sisterly nations of Sudan and Yemen.

Our objective is to realize our shared vision of peace and prosperity for our peoples and to strengthen our future partnership towards progress.

I would like to extend my gratitude to you and the working teams for all the efforts exerted to ensure the success of this Second Strategic Dialogue. We look forward to reviewing these developments during the upcoming strategic dialogue.

Thank you.