Doha: The President of Maldives, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, has praised the outstanding success of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, noting that it is not surprising that the arrangements related to the World Cup received much praise and admiration from football fans, visitors and high-level officials alike.
In an exclusive statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA), the president said, "It is certain that Qatar has set high standards for future tournaments to match the excellent hospitality and safety and security measures it provided during the World Cup."
He added that Qatar has done an impeccable job making it possible to accommodate as many people from around the world, as well as building unique stadiums that display elements of Qatari culture and technological developments, in addition to accommodating the largest number of fans who came to Doha to attend the matches.
The Maldives president drew attention to the warm reception and welcome he found from the Qatari people during his visit with the delegation to attend the World Cup semi-final matches, stressing that Qatar has done well responding to the criticism that it received in the lead up to the tournament.
The scale of the claims may be deemed biased and disproportionate to the actual state of the situation in Qatar.
"We have heard a frank and comprehensive account from Qatar on their take on these issues, and what has been done to address the claims that were targeted at them. Qatar has done a most excellent job in its role as host and as a fellow Muslim nation, Maldives too takes great pride in Qatars achievement," President Solih said.
"At the end of the day, we must be well aware that we come from different backgrounds and cultures, and make a point to not let those differences get in the way of footballs long-held tradition of bringing together the global community in harmony and mutual respect."
Regarding the relations between his country and Qatar, President Solih said, "Maldives and Qatar have enjoyed many decades of friendship. As we say in both countries, our people are bound by our common faith and shared values. Qatar has been a recurring character in the Maldives development story. The generous financial and technical assistance from Qatar particularly towards human resource, and infrastructure development of Maldives have had a lasting impact on improving the livelihoods of many Maldivians."
"My government accords very high importance to working with Qatari authorities to cultivate the people-people contact and further consolidate the beneficial development partnership between Maldives and Qatar," he said.
President Solih added that with the recent increase in the exchange of high-level visits that has followed the strengthened diplomatic engagement between the two countries, he is confident that everyone will be able to see in the years ahead a significant elevation of the ties bilaterally and on multilateral platforms of common interest.
