Emphasising that ‘Qatar is the UK's leading development partner in the Gulf’, the British ambassador, Neerav Patel said several significant pacts will be inked during the upcoming state visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to the UK on December 3 and 4. “This is a really special moment for the relationship between the UK and Qatar. It is only the third state visit to the UK in Qatar's history. It will be the first state visit for an Arab leader under King Charles III,” said the ambassador at a press conference Monday. “I really think that this is going to be a generational moment, a chance for us to renew the partnership, renew the relationship for another generation. We will be signing several agreements during the visit which comprise of multiple areas,” explained Patel. The British envoy said certain areas of cooperation will be defence and security; economy and energy, global cooperation and people to people relationship, though details will be made available only during the state visit. He remarked: “What we're trying to do is to touch on every aspect of the relationship. Defence and security is one of the most important pillars of our relationship. In terms of the air force, the UK has got only one joint squadron anywhere in the world since World War II, and that is with Qatar. It is unique, nowhere else on the planet do we have such a relationship.” “What we are now looking to do is to thicken up the relationships in the defence area and also enabling areas such as digitisation, AI and intelligence. What we're looking to do is to come up with a comprehensive plan so that both countries are ready for the future environment. We hope to push forward cooperation on other areas of security that range from cyber to policing, counter-terrorism, counter-drugs activity, providing security for big public events, including learning from Qatar's experience of the World Cup,” continued Patel. As for economy and energy, the ambassador said that the UK relies on Qatar's LNG as part of its energy mix. “At its height, I believe, Qatar provided 25% of UK's liquid natural gas needs in 2022. What we are keen to do is to keep that going but branch into clean energy as well and to have clean energy partnerships where both countries are investing in new technologies and new startups that will become the unicorns of the future. So the UK's ambition is to become a clean energy superpower and we would really love for Qatar to be a partner in that,” elaborated the envoy. According to Patel, another area of cooperation is international cooperation. “On any international visit with leaders from one country to another, we will be talking about all of the important situations that are going on at the moment in the world, in particular in the region. I am sure the leaders will be talking about Gaza, about Lebanon, about wider instability, but they will also be talking about the essential role that Qatar is playing on mediation both in the region and more broadly,” he pointed out. He remarked: "We believe along with the government of Qatar that we won't have a sustainable calm across the region unless we can find a resolution on Gaza. I'm sure that the leaders will talk about the invaluable efforts that Qatar has been making to mediate on Gaza more widely, repatriating Ukrainian children seized by the Russians, its role in finding deals and mediation and progress in countries ranging from Afghanistan to Venezuela."” “The final pillar or area of cooperation is on the people-to-people links, which is really important. The UK is really proud to call itself Qatar's oldest friend in the western world. Our relationship goes back 160 years and more. The UK is second home for so many countries, particularly London" added the ambassador. Related Story Qatar, Kazakhstan exchange views on combating corruption Qatar, St Kitts sign air services agreementWinners, losers as Rams beat 49ers 12-6 on Thursday Night Football
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Stocks closed higher on Wall Street, giving the market its fifth gain in a row and notching another record high for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% Friday. The Dow added 1%, and the Nasdaq composite tacked on 0.2%. Retailers had some of the biggest gains. Gap soared after reporting quarterly results that easily beat analysts’ estimates. EchoStar fell after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company’s Dish Network unit. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. On Friday: The S&P 500 rose 20.63 points, or 0.3%, to 5,969.34. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 426.16 points, or 1%, to 44,296.51. The Nasdaq composite rose 31.23 points, or 0.2%, to 19,003.65. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 42.65 points, or 1.8%, to 2,406.67. For the week: The S&P 500 is up 98.72 points, or 1.7%. The Dow is up 851.52 points, or 2%. The Nasdaq is up 323.53 points, or 1.7%. The Russell 2000 is up 102.84 points, or 4.5%. For the year: The S&P 500 is up 1,199.51 points, or 25.1%. The Dow is up 6,606.97 points, or 17.5%. The Nasdaq is up 3,992.30 points, or 26.6%. The Russell 2000 is up 379.60 points, or 18.7%.
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