Singapore/Information Office/06 October 2016/ HE Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Thursday that the State of Qatar was successful in opening its doors to all parties involved in any dispute. His Excellency stressed on the importance of international cooperation in ending the crisis in Syria. HE the Foreign Minister was speaking during a lecture at the Middle-East Institute that discussed the scope of peace and security in the Middle-East and its relationship with development and good governance. His Excellency said that the State of Qatar was always looking to excel in working with other countries around the world and respecting diversity. HE the Foreign Minister said that Qatar and Singapore have ties that were bigger than trade and business relations. His Excellency said that both countries are emerging economies that are small in size geographically. Another similarity, His Excellency said was that both countries were committed to developing their human capital. His Excellency also pointed to the development of Qatar's internal policies that center around respecting people and their needs. HE the Foreign Minister said it was impossible to develop human capital without strong education and higher education. His Excellency added that Qatar commitment to developing human capital extended to its foreign policies, by providing developmental assistance and mediation efforts to help avoid future struggles. HE the Foreign Minister then discussed the goals of Qatar's foreign policy, saying that it aims for encouraging peaceful resolutions to crises. Another policy goal was supporting the right to self-determination, along with avoiding interference in internal affairs of other countries and cooperating with members of the international community that promote peace. His Excellency added that Qatar was committed to maintaining international peace and security and enhancing relations with all governmental and non-governmental entities. HE the Foreign Minister added that Qatar's mediation efforts was successful in those goals because the country kept its doors open to all parties involved in a crisis. HE the Foreign Minister then discussed the Arab revolutions, focusing on counter-revolutionary forces that reversed the gains Arab people made in the first years of their revolt. His Excellency said that the dreams of an entire generation were killed along with hundreds of thousands of people, while Bashar Al Assad was taking the international community hostage to his wishes of remaining in power regardless of the mounting death tolls. His Excellency pointed to developments in Aleppo as the biggest demonstration of that, where people have been relentlessly put under siege by Assad forces for many months. HE the Foreign Minister added that the State of Qatar had to close down its health center there after it was targeted by bombs a number of times. His Excellency stressed that the international community must intervene and find solutions to end the violence in Syria. His Excellency added that the international community must intervene because the longer the fight goes on the more radicalized Syrian youth stuck in the crisis might get. His Excellency highlighted that the international community will surely face some battles in the near term. His Excellency warned that the so-called Islamic State group was not yet defeated, even though it has been struggling of late. Meanwhile Al Assad was still in power, HE the Foreign Minister added. In the long-term, His Excellency maintained, focusing on good governance and development of human capital will be victorious. HE the Foreign Minister said that strengthening the rule of law and transparency will help meet the needs of the people and provide them with the opportunity to unleash their creative energies, undermining extremist rhetoric in the process. His Excellency concluded by saying that both Qatar and Singapore were committed to developing human capital and good governance, which forms "the bedrock of our friendship and partnership."