Qatar Participates in the Coordinating Committee Meeting of the Global Counterterrorism Forum in Japan

Qatar Participates in the Coordinating Committee Meeting of the Global Counterterrorism Forum in Japan

Tokyo / Information Office / March 25  

Qatar participated in the 13th meeting of the Coordinating Committee of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF), held in Japanese capital, Tokyo.

Qatari Foreign Minister's Special Envoy on Counterterrorism and Mediation in Disputes' settlements HE Ambassador Dr Mutlaq bin Majed Al Qahtani headed the Qatari delegation during the meeting.

Participating delegations discussed ways to strengthen international cooperation in the area of counter-terrorism and ways to operationalize the forum's initiatives.

Qatar stressed its support for these initiatives, stressing the importance of constructive cooperation without politicizing these joint efforts.

During the meeting, Qatar presented its point of view in the fight against terrorism and extremism from a regional perspective, stating that most of the root causes of the conflicts related to terrorism and extremism in the Middle East belonged to sectarian differences, regional rivalry and ongoing conflicts in Yemen, Somalia, Libya, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Qatar further stressed that the real war on terror is not the defeat of ISIS in Iraq and Syria militarily, it is to establish social norms to ensure peaceful coexistence, democracy, equal opportunities and political integration.

The State of Qatar considers that suffering and injustice paves the way for terrorism to flourish, in addition to the extremist religious doctrines that posed a threat to all, it is a sign that these extremist ideologies exist in all cultures and are not exclusive to Islam.

In this context, Qatar referred to the persistence of the evil axes in the region in distorting religious principles in their favor and poisoning the minds of the desperate, stressing that the policy of "adventure" must be put to an end "and political maneuvers by the new adventurers in the region whom I have described as compounding the complexity of the crises, which is causing directly to the threat to peace and security in the region and the world at large.

Qatar referred to the important role played by non-governmental institutions in operationalizing the objectives and initiatives of the Forum, warning the exploitation of these institutions by some States of the region (as a center of guidance) for political purposes, thereby weakening their independence and importance in the fight against violent extremism.