Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez received the Emir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamin Bin Hamad Al Thani, at Moncloa Palace on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations and as part of the European tour which will also take the Qatari leader to Germany, the United Kingdom and Slovenia.
This is the first time that the current Emir of Qatar has officially visited Spain.
Spain and Qatar have agreed to transform their bilateral relations into a strategic partnership, deepening the economic and political ties between the two countries.
For Sánchez, although commercial and investment relations have already been important and there have always been intense cultural and friendly ties, from now on – with the new strategic partnership – they will receive a significant boost, “in accordance to the very close vision on how to face the current global challenges that we share, such as multilateralism or the commitment to take care of the planet, to explore the immense potential of renewable energies and the ecological transition”.
Specifically, His Highness Sheikh Tamin Bin Hamad Al Thani announced that Qatar will mobilize nearly €5 billion in investments in Spain over the next few years.
A collaboration agreement has also been signed between the sovereign wealth fund, QIA, and the Spanish public financial entity COFIDES, which will facilitate investment flows in Spain for green and digital economy projects in accordance with the recovery, transformation and resilience promoted by the government. from Spain. Spain offers guarantees for safe investments and a bright future, linked to the dual green and digital transition, as well as a solid economic recovery framework at the forefront of the EU, despite the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
The Ministry of Economy and Digital Transformation has also signed a parallel agreement with its Qatari counterpart to strengthen financial and economic cooperation through the exchange of information and the establishment of workshops and seminars.
Joint statement
Following this official state visit, Spain and Qatar also adopted a “historic” joint declaration, which creates a framework for regular and structured political dialogue on the common agenda of the two countries in regional affairs. and global.
Qatar maintains this type of strategic dialogue with very few countries – the United States, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan, Turkey and China – which, combined with the current geopolitical context following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine makes it all the more important for Spain when considering energy security criteria. Qatar is the world’s second largest producer of natural gas.
Pedro Sánchez stressed that the new strategic relationship “strengthens the bond between the business communities of the two countries” and provides opportunities for Qatari investments in Spain, but also for Spanish companies in Qatar, especially in areas such as infrastructure, the water sector, agribusiness and renewable energy, which are key to the emirate’s energy diversification, as outlined in its Qatar National Vision 2030.
A total of 12 agreements and memorandums of understanding were signed, covering economic, trade, educational, military and judicial cooperation, health, science and innovation.