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Ailyn Agonia
DOHA
THE recent state visits of the Emir His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia reflect strong ties between Qatar and Southeast Asia, said Thailand Ambassador to Qatar and current chairman of ASEAN Committee in Doha (ACD) HE Soonthorn Chaiyindeepum.
At a media briefing for the upcoming ASEAN events held on Monday, Soonthorn and other envoys and heads of missions of ASEAN countries in Qatar underlined the positive impact of HH the Emir's state visits to the three ASEAN member countries last month.
Among the outcome of the visits were signing of 11 agreements between Qatar and Singapore, eight with Indonesia, including for cooperation in education and sports, and 10 agreements with Malaysia, which includes collaboration in the health sector.
"We strongly hope that in the future there will be more exchange of high profile state visits between Qatar and other Southeast Asian countries. This shows the increasing trade and investments between the ASEAN countries and Qatar," the Thai envoy added.
Singapore Ambassador to Qatar HE Jai Sohan Singh said,"There were many positive takeaways from HH the Emir's visit to Singapore. HH the Emir had a fruitful talk with the prime minister and president of Singapore. The two countries signed around seven agreements in public sector and four in commercial sector. We established five joint committees to monitor implementation of the agreements. The Foreign Ministers of the two countries will oversee the works of the panels."
Deputy Head of Mission at the Malaysian Embassy Mohamad Shahir Bin Sabarudin added that the visit of HH the Emir accompanied by a high profile delegation has enhanced collaboration between Qatar and Malaysia not only in trade and investment sectors, but also in higher education, judiciary and legal sector.
"The MoUs indicate that both Qatar and Malaysia are willing to strengthen the bilateral relationship further. The two countries have also agreed to explore cooperation further in the health sector," the Malaysian official said.
Indonesian Ambassador HE Muhammad Basri Sidehabi lauded the signing of a slew of agreements between Qatar and his country including for cooperation in education and sports sectors.
