Qatar an active, influential partner in UN: Sheikha Alya
HE Qatar’s Permanent Representative to the UN, ambassador Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif al-Thani, has said that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani’s keenness on participating annually in the meetings of the UN General Assembly in New York affirms that Qatar is present at the highest level in international forums to contribute to the discussion of global issues and finding solutions to them.
In an interview with the Qatari newspaper Lusail published yesterday, HE Sheikha Alya said Qatar’s policies enjoy the confidence and respect of the society in light of its great contributions to resolving international crises and challenges.
The state has become an effective and influential partner in the United Nations and is referred to as a model for a country that respects its commitments, she said, adding that hence, the United Nations looks forward to His Highness the Amir’s attendance in such a high-level forum.
She pointed out that His Highness the Amir, in his speech before the UN General Assembly, addressed Qatar’s positions on regional and international issues, adding that the speech received great attention from various active international circles.
The United Nations appreciated and respected His Highness the Amir for his wisdom and deep vision of international developments, she said, stressing that his presence in New York, and his very important speech carries important messages and reflects the distinguished position of Qatar under the leadership of His Highness in the international arena.
She said Qatar is proud of its distinguished position in the United Nations and its active role referred to by the international organisation and the member states in the issues raised globally.
HE Sheikha Alya underlined that Qatar is known for its serious and fruitful partnerships with the UN bodies, in addition to its achievements and respect for the international obligations as well as its initiatives in various fields to support multilateral international action to confront common challenges, indicating that this comes within the framework of the role played by Qatari diplomacy to implement the country’s foreign policy and a translation of the directives and vision of His Highness the Amir.
She said that as a translation of the existing partnership between Qatar and the United Nations, Doha, which the United Nations views as a prestigious global platform for dialogue, has become an international centre for many of the major UN organisations, the matter that represents a very important message that the State is the UN’s most reliable regional partner.
Regarding the United Nations House, HE Sheikha Alya said that it is hoped that it will be opened in Doha in January 2022 during the 5th Conference on the Least Developed Countries (UNLDC-5) hosted by Qatar, pointing out that it will include offices for UN organisations including: the UN Children’s Fund (Unicef), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the Regional Center for Training and Capacity Building in Combating Cybercrime, the Analysis and Communication Center of the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the office for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the International Hub on Behavioural Insights to Counter Violent Extremism and Terrorism as well as the Programme Office on Parliamentary Participation in Preventing and Combating Terrorism.
On the resonance of the Shura Council elections within the corridors of the United Nations, she said that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the announcement issued by His Highness the Amir at the opening of the 49th ordinary session of the Shura Council to hold the elections.
At the time, the UN chief indicated that he was aware of the preparations and that the Qatar government would take all necessary measures to conduct comprehensive and participatory elections, HE Sheikha Alya pointed out, stressing that this welcome comes in line with the United Nations’ view of the positive steps that the state has always adopted, as well as the international organisation’s appreciation of the international policy of the state in various fields.
She pointed out that the wide participation in the elections that took place a few days ago, which exceeded 63%, and the wide participation of women as voters and candidates for the Council, as well as the integrity of the elections reflects the awareness of the Qatari people to exercise their rights guaranteed by the constitution, which is an important achievement recorded for our leadership represented by His Highness the Amir.
HE Sheikha Alya added that the new Legislative Council will be representative of all segments of society and an advanced step in the democratic path and that the image and status of Qatar will be as it deserves and as the world has known it.
On Qatar’s diplomacy towards regional issues, she said that the State was and remains a pioneer in supporting joint Arab action on Arab issues, foremost of which is the Palestinian cause and achieving stability in Syria, Libya and the region, stressing that the country has a long and rich record.
She said that despite the challenges facing the Arab region, the Palestinian issue is still at the top of the chronic crises in which the international community has not been able to make progress that would advance the peace process between the Palestinians and Israelis and reach a solution based on the establishment of the two states.
She underlined the state’s firm position that calls for a permanent, just and comprehensive settlement of the Middle East issue on the basis of international legitimacy, United Nations resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative.
Regarding Qatar’s role in promoting international peace and security and human rights, HE Sheikha Alya said that Qatar views peace comprehensively, so its initiatives to achieve peace includes all areas that contribute to achieving peace, in accordance with the provisions of the UN Charter.
She said that the state of Qatar has paid great attention to participating in international efforts to support the role of mediation and preventive diplomacy, which constitutes a fundamental pillar in the work of the United Nations, and that the Qatari mediation has achieved positive results that contributed to achieving peaceful settlement to many disputes, noting the great contributions of the State of Qatar in the field of development, especially the provision of education in conflict areas, as it is a major tool for building peace.
She underlined that the state plays an active and responsible role in the international multilateral action to establish and promote peace and security in the world, stressing that Qatar plays an important in promoting international peace and security through its development arm, the Qatar Investment Authority, which promotes stability and peace in countries facing development challenges, by establishing fruitful partnerships to contribute to the achievement of the development plans of the concerned countries.
Qatari charities also work in many countries and conflict areas with the aim of providing relief to civilians and alleviating their suffering, she added.
She said that education is a key tool for the sustainability of peace, which is why Qatar has made huge contributions to providing education in many regions of the world, especially in areas of conflict, noting that the generous efforts of Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), have made great achievements in providing quality education to 10mn out-ofschool children in more than 50 countries around the world through the Education Above All Foundation (EAA) and in partnership with the Unicef and more than 80 global partners, as well as providing economic empowerment to half a million young men and women in our region.
She also indicated that there is a co-operation with the United Nations through partnerships between the two sides to build capacities and protect young people from the scourge of extremism that leads to terrorism.
She referred to the General Assembly’s adoption of Resolution 74/275 submitted by Qatar, to designate September 9 as the International Day to Protect Education from Attack, which was an initiative of Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advocate.
This initiative is added to Her Highness’s numerous humanitarian and development initiatives in various regions of the world, she said.
With regard to Qatar’s important role in human rights, HE Sheikha Alya stressed that the protection and promotion of human rights is a pillar in the state’s policy, based on its Arab and Islamic principles and values, pointing out that Qatar is one of the first countries in the region to host since 2009 the UN Human Rights Training and Documentation Centre for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region, which plays an important role in building capacity in human rights and law enforcement, combating corruption, and supporting national human rights institutions.
HE Sheikha Alya indicated that in appreciation for Qatar’s role in protecting and promoting human rights by the international community, she was elected as a member of the Human Rights Council for four sessions, expressing her aspiration that the state will continue its current membership for the next session of the Council in 2022, with the aim of co-operating with the member states of the council, especially the states that share with it the respect and consolidation of human rights values based on international conventions, the rule of law and the preservation of human dignity.
On combating terrorism, she affirmed that Qatar has a distinguished role in fighting terrorism at the international level, referring to the vision His Highness the Amir presented in his speeches to world leaders at the UN General Assembly, and His Highness’ assertion that success in combating terrorism requires addressing violent extremism and its roots, and identifying means to prevent and combat its spread, and that the starting point for this should be the protection of children and youth, as this important and basic segment of society should have the priority in all national and international plans and programmes, to strengthen the immunity of societies against fanatic and extremist ideas.
She emphasised that Qatar attached special importance to combating violent extremism, worked within the framework of the United Nations and at the national level, in order to protect children and youth from extremism, and continued its regional and international approaches and partnerships to achieve this goal.
She also said that Qatar has effective and exemplary partnerships with the United Nations, and its agencies concerned with combating terrorism are strong and well-known to member states, including the partnership that has existed for years with the CounterTerrorism Directorate.
After the entities concerned with combating terrorism were united under the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) in 2017, Qatar provided support for the activities of the Office, and a contribution agreement was signed with the UNOCT according to which the State contributes $75mn to support its programmes and activities, which made it the world’s leader in supporting the office, HE Sheikha Alya said, noting the launch of the International Hub on Behavioural Insights to Counter Terrorism.
She underlined that Qatar is one of the developed countries that has a legislative structure and laws related to combating terrorism, including laws related to combating terrorist financing and money laundering, in addition to the concerned bodies’ implementation of national obligations regarding the international instruments to which Qatar is a party.