(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Doha: At the end of his three-day official visit to Qatar, Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi expressed satisfaction over “the particular care and attention” given to the Tunisian community in Qatar, pointing out that the number of Tunisians in Qatar has quintupled over the past four years to 20,000.
“I am pleased that the Qatari government has expressed satisfaction over the role being played by the Tunisian community here,” Qatar News Agency quoted Essebsi as saying.
The President and his delegation yesterday left Doha and were seen off at Hamad International Airport by Minister of Finance H E Ali Sherif Al Emadi, Qatari Ambassador to Tunisia, Abdullah bin Nasser Al Humaidi, and Tunisian Ambassador to Qatar, Salah Al Salhi. Essebsi described his visit as a ‘successful’ and ‘fruitful’ step towards achieving a quantum leap in bilateral relations.
In a meeting with the local media, he praised the level of Qatari-Tunisian relations, stressing the deeply-rooted and historic ties and the distinct level of cooperation.
“We believe that Qatar, thanks to its great achievements and the wise leadership, will be among the developed countries,” he said, hailing the great development witnessed by Qatar in the economic and urban sectors. He said Qatar’s position on supporting Tunisia is ‘firm’.
“Qatar stands with Tunisia, all of Tunisia,” he said, dismissing as “groundless” any other claims.
Tunisia is keen to invest in its Arab-Arab and Islamic-Arab roots while taking advantage of its close position to Europe in building excellent relations with both sides.
It has great cooperation with European countries, Essebsi said, pointing out that 75 percent of Tunisia’s trade is with Europe but this does not mean ignoring its roots in the Arab and Muslim world. On Tunisia’s democratic experience, Essebsi said his country is going through a difficult period and experiencing a democratic transition and stressed its strong determination to continue on this path. Tunisia has ingredients for success of the democratic experience, but also needs to develop its economy to enhance this success, he said. ‘I believe we are moving in the right direction but all conditions for success are not yet fulfilled,’ he added.
Essebsi stressed the importance of achieving security, eradicating terrorism and activating the national economy. Yesterday, he visited the Tunisian School in Doha and met the administrative team and students. He listened to their demands and presented a collection of books and stories to the school library to be used for all educational levels.
The Peninsula