Qatar does not advocate 'forgive and forget' for Russia, foreign minister says after colleague's controversial remarks

Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Thani connected Tuesday appeared to close a arguable connection that his chap curate made implicit the play concerning Russia's warfare successful Ukraine.

Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, Qatar's vigor curate and caput of the authorities state company, said that helium was definite Russian state would yet travel backmost to Europe, arsenic the continent would "forgive and forget" Moscow for its penetration of Ukraine.

"We're each blessed to person to beryllium capable to hide and to forgive. And I deliberation things get mended with time… they larn from that concern and astir apt person a overmuch bigger diverseness [of vigor intake]," al-Kaabi said connected Saturday, during an vigor forum successful Abu Dhabi.

The remark sparked choler and came conscionable arsenic a Russian rocket onslaught killed astatine slightest 40 civilians successful a residential vicinity of Ukraine's Dnipro.

Asked if al-Kaabi's remark was the authoritative presumption of Qatar, al-Thani said:

"Well, it's not actually," the curate said. "First of all, politically speaking, erstwhile we are talking astir the concern and the war, Qatar has a precise wide governmental stance connected this: we don't judge the penetration of different country. We don't judge threatening by unit oregon the usage of force, we don't judge civilians to beryllium hurt. And we person been demonstrating this passim our votes wrong the United Nations."

He added, "Our connection to the Russians, to the Ukrainian has been always... these kinds of differences and disagreements shouldn't beryllium resolved successful a battlefield, they should beryllium resolved done dialogue."

Europe has agelong been Russia's largest lawsuit of astir vigor commodities, peculiarly earthy state supplies. EU countries person dramatically reduced their imports of Russian vigor supplies, slapping sanctions successful effect to Moscow's full-scale penetration of Ukraine.

The chopped successful imports has accrued vigor costs for Europe, sending leaders and lipid and state executives to question retired caller sources of vigor and alternate supplies.

Al-Thani maintained that it was up to Europe to determine its vigor future.

"Actually it is the European decision," helium said. "At the extremity of the day, from our position and our policy, arsenic authorities of Qatar, we ne'er politicize the energy. We spot that food, medicine, energy, those are items that request to beryllium protected, due to the fact that they are for the people, they are not for the authorities oregon for governmental reasons."

He added that Europe's woes aren't solely the effect of the war, but said that the struggle had accelerated the continent's vigor challenges.

"It has been for a precise agelong time, policies... were not realistic," the curate said, pointing to an overzealous vigor modulation that discounted the value of fossil fuels portion relying excessively highly connected renewables.

Qatar has emerged arsenic an important alternate root of earthy state for Europe. In precocious November, QatarEnergy and ConocoPhillips signed agreements to export 2 cardinal tons of liquified earthy state (LNG) yearly to Germany for astatine slightest 15 years, starting successful 2026. 

Qatar maintains bully relations with Russia. Its $300 cardinal sovereign wealthiness fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, owns astir 19% of Russian lipid elephantine Rosneft and plans to proceed investing successful the country.