The Third Meeting of the Consultative Group for the Istanbul Co-operation Initiative (ICI) kicked off here yesterday.
HE the Secretary-General of the Foreign Ministry, Dr Ahmed bin Hassan al-Hammadi, said that the course of relations between Qatar, as a member of the ICI, and Nato has witnessed over the past years a landmark development.
In the opening speech, he said that this development was reflected in the mutual visits between officials from both sides at the highest levels in addition to the keenness of Qatar to actively participate in all efforts aimed at supporting and enhancing areas of co-operation between the ICI countries and the Nato.
Qatar hosted the Annual Nato Conference on WMD Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation in March 2015, which marked the very first time that the event was held outside Europe in addition to yesterday’s meeting, al-Hammadi said.
In this context, he pointed to the approval of Qatar of the Individual Partnership and Co-operation Programme (IPCP) between Qatar and Nato which is a comprehensive framework for co-operation and joint action between the two sides through which Qatar would clarify its vision on its ambitions and expectations and thus identify the aspects of practical activities of co-operation.
Dr Ahmed bin Hassan al-Hammadi stressed that this evolution of Qatar’s relations with Nato within the framework of its membership in the ICI since 2005 stresses the country’s commitment to employ its potential and capabilities in enhancing security, co-operation and sustainable peace at the regional and international levels.
He stressed the special importance of this meeting due to the current developments in the Middle East and the world, pointing out that the regional situation has serious repercussions on the security and stability in the rest of the world.
He urged the international community and all its components to come together to find solutions that lead to halting the deterioration of the situation in the region.