Foreign Minister Özdil Nami, who met with the Minister of Commerce and Industry and the Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar in Qatar’s capital city of Doha, has been continuing his high level contacts yesterday and today.
Within the framework of his contacts, Minister Nami also met with Dr. Gerd Nonneman, Dean of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service at the Doha campus. Nami also visited the Cultural Village of “Katara” upon invitation by Dr. Khalid Bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti, Director General of the public Corporation for the Village, which is affiliated with the Qatar Evkaf and where Qatar’s international cultural events are held.
Speaking during the visit, Al Sulaiti expressed that he is honoured to host Nami, and conveyed information regarding the events which are organised at the Village. In turn, Nami stated that he has heard many positive things about Katara Cultural Village and would be pleased to engage in cooperation with the Village. In response, Sultaiti expressed their readiness to cooperate and that they would be pleased to do so.
Furthermore, Nami participated in a panel on “the Cyprus Problem and Negotiation Process” which was organised at the Brookings Doha Center, a branch of the renowned Brookings Institute of Washington D.C. During his presentation, Nami underlined that among the current issues in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Cyprus issue is the easiest to resolve, and added that the resolution of this issue will contribute to the normalization and improvement of relations between Turkey, Cyprus, Eastern Mediterranean countries and the EU.
Foreign Minister Nami warned that if the issue pertaining to the extraction of hydrocarbon resources in the region is not managed well, the current situation in Cyprus may drift into an even worse state. Nami stated, on the other hand, that it is clear that if the issue is managed well, it could have a positive contribution to the settlement process in Cyprus. Nami indicated that the Greek Cypriot leader should discuss this issue at the negotiation table by returning to the table without preconditions. Nami emphasized that the most effective way to dispel the intransigent stance of the Greek Cypriot side and ensure that it adopts a positive attitude during the settlement process is for the senseless and unjust isolation imposed on the Turkish Cypriots to be lifted immediately.
