British ambassador to Qatar Ajay Sharma joined around 1,000 guests of the British embassy yesterday evening in celebrating the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II and the strong partnership between the UK and Qatar.
The guests of honour in attendance were HE Dr Mohamed Abdul Wahed al-Hammadi, Minister of Education and Higher Education; and HE Mohamed bin Abdullah al-Rumaihi, Minister of Municipality and Environment.
The British ambassador also welcomed senior Qatari figures from business, government, culture and sport, the Diplomatic Corps and members of the British and international communities. Ministry of Foreign Affairs protocol director Ibrahim Yousef Fakhro was also present.
They were entertained by the Qatar Armed Forces band and Doha Jazz.
Ambassador Sharma said: “I was delighted that so many of the embassy’s friends and contacts were able to attend the Queen’s birthday party in honour of UK’s longest serving monarch, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. “Everyone knows the UK has a historically close relationship with Qatar, but we want to celebrate not only the past but also to look ahead to the future. This is a relationship based not only on shared economic and security interests, but also on the strong and warm personal connections established over the years between Qatari and British people.
“In the coming years, we look forward to continuing to work together closely in the fields of diplomacy and security, business, service, education, culture and tourism; and in strengthening even further the relationship between our citizens.”
In a statement, the British embassy thanked a number of companies for their sponsorship of the Queen’s birthday party. These are Al Khayyat Contracting & Trading, UrbaCon Trading & Constructing, Alfardan, Atkins, BAE Systems, Blue Rubicon, Serco, Shell and Vodafone, as well as Fifty One East, the Edge Picture Company, IDS and W Hotel.