Senior Minister of State (SMS), Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman visited the State of Qatar from 15 to 16 December 2018 to participate in the 18th Doha Forum. Hosted by Qatar since 2001, the Doha Forum is an annual high-level meeting for government officials, business representatives, technical experts, and civil society representatives to discuss issues on regional and global stability and economic prosperity. During the Forum, SMS Dr Maliki participated as a panellist in a session titled “Asian Connectivity Conundrums: From Trade Routes to Trade Strategy” and attended a high-level, closed-door luncheon discussion on “Regional Security in the Middle East” hosted by the Munich Security Conference (MSC).
SMS Dr Maliki called on Qatar Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Bin Jassim Al Thani. They reaffirmed the excellent relations between Qatar and Singapore and looked forward to further bilateral cooperation following the inaugural Implementation Monitoring Mechanism meeting co-chaired by Sheikh Mohammed and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan in April 2018.
SMS Dr Maliki met with Secretary to the Emir for Security Affairs Mohammed Bin Ahmed Abdullah Al Misnad. They exchanged views on developments in Asia and the Middle East.
SMS Dr Maliki also met with Palestinian Chief Negotiator and Palestine Liberation Organisation Secretary-General Dr Saeb Erekat. They exchanged views on recent developments in the Middle East. SMS Dr Maliki reaffirmed Singapore’s long-standing and consistent position on a negotiated two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side-by-side in peace and security. Dr Erekat thanked Singapore for our continued commitment to the capacity-building efforts of the Palestinians under the Enhanced Technical Assistance Package.
On the sidelines of the 18th Doha Forum, SMS Dr. Maliki met briefly with Japan Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno, Turkey Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Romania Foreign Minister Teodor-Viorel Melscanu, Moldova Foreign Minister Tudor Ulianovschi, and MSC Chairman Wolfgang Ischinger.
SMS Dr Maliki attended a reception for the Singapore community based in Qatar.
SMS Dr Maliki departs for Singapore this evening.
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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
16 DECEMBER 2018