President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has met the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, for official talks at the Amiri Diwan, the Emir’s Administrative Office.
President Solih, accompanied by First Lady Fazna Ahmed, and a high-level delegation, arrived in Doha late Sunday night to commence an official visit.
The President's Office said that the two leaders discussed ways of strengthening the bilateral bond between the two countries.
The Maldives has long recognized Qatar for its generosity and invaluable contributions to the Maldives’ socio-economic development.
The President and the Emir discussed the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in their respective countries.
President Solih noted that Covid-19 has illustrated to the Maldives the need to expedite the diversification of its economy and to focus on building more resilience through decentralization and sustainable development.
He praised the measures taken by the Qatari government to contain the spread of the pandemic, noting it has one of the lowest mortality rates in the world.
The two leaders also spoke about increasing people-to-people contact and business interactions between the Maldives and Qatar, to facilitate good bilateral relations and increase mutual investment opportunities. To further enhance bilateral relations the President relayed his intention to appoint a non-resident Maldivian Ambassador to Qatar.
Ending the meeting, President Solih expressed his desire to continue to work together with Qatar on issues of global importance, such as climate change, sustainable development, and the promotion and protection of human rights.
After the meeting, President Solih said in a tweet that it was his pleasure to meet the Qatari Emir and said that they had very engaging discussions on taking Maldives-Qatar relations to new heights from enhancing diplomatic engagements to increasing investments and development cooperation.
President Solih and Madam Fazna Ahmed had departed to Qatar last night and are expected to stop at Bangladesh for a state visit before returning home. Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid and Transport Minister Aishath Nahula along with other officials accompanied the President and the first lady on their travels.
