HH The Amir Speech at the Opening of the 3rd Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit

Your Excellencies and Highnesses,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

May peace, mercy and blessing of God be upon you,

At the outset, I am pleased to welcome you to Qatar, wishing you a pleasant stay. I would also like to extend my deep thanks to both the sisterly State of Kuwait and the friendly Kingdom of Thailand for their gracious hosting of the previous two summits of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue. I also thank the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran for the valuable efforts it has made during its presidency of the dialogue this year and its keenness to promote it.

This summit is held under the theme: "Sports Diplomacy", which was chosen to express our firm belief that enhancing sports and cooperation in this regard is closely consistent with the vision of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue 2030, and out of our conviction in the importance of sports for the health of individuals and societies, and its role in promoting peace, spreading the values of tolerance and mutual respect, and dispelling stereotypes and preconceived ideas. We look forward to concretize this theme into a tangible reality that will reflect positively on our peoples and countries.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We believe in the importance of intensifying efforts to contain the escalation and tension and to stem the bloodshed by resorting to rational dialogue, the rules of international law, the United Nations Charter, the international legitimacy resolutions, and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states and non-interference in their internal affairs in a way that guarantees the right for all countries and peoples to live in security, peace, and dignity.

This summit is being held amidst challenges and tensions facing the international community, many of whose institutions have been marginalized, while the endemic violations and unaddressed elephant in the room crimes have made it appear as if it is devoid of international law and its values.

The world is still witnessing a dangerous escalation of the war waged by the Israeli occupation authorities against our Palestinian brothers in the Gaza Strip and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories. The defenseless civilians are targeted by non-stop aerial bombings that led to the killing of tens of thousands of innocent victims, children, women and men. The toll exceeded 41 thousand martyrs, in addition to the targeting of the headquarters of international organizations and destroying residential, health and educational infrastructure, and all facilities necessary for survival.

It has become crystal clear that what is happening is genocide in addition to transforming the Gaza Strip into an area unfit for human habitation in preparation for forced displacement.

On this occasion, we renew our rejection and condemnation of the aerial strikes and escalating military operations unleashed by the Israeli occupation forces against the sisterly Lebanese Republic recently, which claimed the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians who committed no error, and displaced more than a million citizens.

Israel is exploiting the international failure to implement the occupation plans to expand settlements in the West Bank in preparation for annexing it, or at least annexing parts of it. Its rulers also believe that they can avail themselves of this opportunity to implement its schemes in Lebanon. The institutions of the international community stand helplessly by vis-a-vis this dangerous escalation of the Israeli aggression on Lebanon, which is spilling over day after day, in flagrant violation of all international norms and laws. 

We have previously warned of the consequences of not holding Israel accountable for its crimes against humanity and its refusal to implement the resolutions of international legitimacy on ending the occupation and resolving the Palestinian issue justly. This has prompted it to heedlessly disregard the international law, and gave its rulers a free hand in Palestine and Lebanon. We call for serious action to ceasefire and stop the aggression carried out by the Israeli occupation of Lebanese territories.

Security will not be achieved without achieving just peace, and this in turn will not be achieved in our region without the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, based on pre-June 4th 1967 border with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative. The State of Qatar will continue to uphold the Palestinian rights and support its people to obtain all their legitimate rights.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Asian continent occupies an important position, geopolitically and economically, in addition to its prominent impact on global trade as the largest continent that contains strategic energy reserves, global markets and stock exchanges that are the largest of their kind worldwide, as well as its enormous human resources.

In order to leverage the comparative advantages of each country, we must work to strengthen the synergy between our countries in various fields by identifying common strengths, exploring opportunities and putting forward proposals aimed at developing our societies.

In conclusion, I would like to thank the General Secretariat for its efforts to reach a final version of Doha Declaration due to be adopted at this summit, in addition to following up on the implementation of previous dialogue resolutions and the good preparation for this summit, which we hope will achieve its desired goals. We also wish the friendly Kingdom of Thailand every success during its presidency of the dialogue next year.

I reiterate welcoming you to Doha. 
May peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you.