Qatar: ‘Both China, US are allies, we do not prioritise one’

Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, has stated that his country has strong relations with the US and that China is its largest energy supplier and political ally. Al-Thani affirmed that both nations: “Have an important role to play in the global peace and stability.”

In his interview with News Arabia, Al-Thani added that Doha does not want to be in a position where it must choose one party at the expense of the other. He continued that if forced into this position, it would not prioritise a relationship with one country at the expense of the other: “Most countries of the world do not want to see polarisation in the world; they don’t want to see big power competitions.”

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The Qatari minister stressed that this tension “will just lead us to more polarisation and will make the world a more difficult place for all of us,” as quoted by Qatar’s Al Sharq newspaper.

He advised countries that have relations with the US and China to maintain friendly relations with all countries and to help resolve differences peacefully to avoid escalation.

Regarding the global energy market, Al-Thani said: “Qatar seeks to stabilise the energy market, and it is in everyone’s interest that this happens.”

Al-Thani explained that the energy market is unstable, noting that Qatar hopes for stability in this field because it is a long-term supplier to many countries. He added that his country has many partnerships with Asia and Europe and seeks to continue these.

According to Al-Thani: “Despite the change in the energy market following the Corona pandemic, and the instability of the markets, we never delayed any shipment with our partners. We supply to Asia and we supply Europe as well and we didn’t give priority to one over the other. We just stick to our contracts, and we want to help all of our friends.”

The repercussions of the global pandemic and the Russian war on Ukraine, which has been ongoing since February 2022, caused a significant increase in crude oil and gas prices, exceeding $100 per barrel after falling to less than $30 per barrel in 2020.

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