Brexit will not affect bilateral ties with Qatar: British envoy

The British exit from the European Union will not affect Qatar and the UK's bilateral ties, British ambassador Ajay Sharma told Gulf Times.

“The bilateral relationship between Qatar and the UK is excellent and the result of the referendum will not affect the closeness and co-operation between our two countries — which is based on our shared history and interests,” the envoy explained.

“We’re committed to developing the relationship further across the board — in particular in the areas of defence, security, foreign policy, and trade,” Sharma stated.

“As the Prime Minister said in his statement, the UK's economy is fundamentally strong and we’re a great trading nation, with our science and arts, our engineering and creativity respected the world over,” he noted.

During his visit to Qatar in February, UK’s Minister of State for Defence Procurement Philip Dunne reiterated a need to continuously invest in defence and security due to terrorist threats and increasing tensions in the region.

He said the UK-Qatar defence business has increased substantially after the two countries signed a number of agreements from 2012 when the minister first visited the country as a minister.

UK, which started building a permanent base in Bahrain last year, has also built strong defence relationship with various countries in the region aside from Qatar, according to the minister.

The British embassy is hoping that Qatar will consider buying ‘Typhoon,’ dubbed as one of the most advanced fighter jets in the market.

Sharma had earlier stressed that the two countries’ defence relationship is wide-ranging and much stronger than selling fighter jets.

The envoy added that the UK is interested to hold military training with Qatar, aimed at provide more exercises and training opportunities.

Sharma noted that UK and Qatar are also keen to boost its bilateral relations in different fields such as trade and investment, education, culture, and health, among others.

Courtesy: gulf-times.com