The interior minister of Germany made comments that were critical of Qatar’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup, which were denounced by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The GCC’s Secretary General Nayef Al Hajraf reaffirmed the group’s support for Qatar in a statement on Saturday, saying that it would “combat any meddling in its internal affairs.”
The GCC opposes “the publicizing of claims that do not serve the establishment of normal ties between the two nations as a violation of diplomatic norms, traditions, and international rules,” according to Al Hajraf.
The GCC leader praised Qatar for playing a leading role “in fostering civilized dialogue and promoting understanding between states in a framework of mutual respect” and called Qatar’s hosting of the event “a source of justified pride.”
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Last week, Germany’s Minister of Interior Nancy Faeser criticised Qatar’s human rights record during an interview with local German broadcaster ARD network.
Faeser, who is scheduled to visit Doha this week, described Qatar’s hosting of the tournament as “very tricky” for the German government.
“There are criteria that must be adhered to and it would be better that tournaments are not awarded to such states,” she said.
Qatar responded to the statements by summoning Germany’s envoy to Doha Dr. Claudius Fischbach on Friday.
In a statement, the Gulf state’s foreign ministry said it handed Claudius an objection memo to express its “disappointment and complete rejection and condemnation” of Faeser’s remarks.
The Qatari foreign ministry further stated that the remarks go “against diplomatic norms and conventions, especially in light of the distinguished ties between the State of Qatar and Germany in all fields.”
The memo also expressed “Qatar’s complete rejection of those remarks made towards a country whose hosting of the World Cup was justice done to a region suffering from an unjust stereotype for decades.”
Echoing similar sentiments, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dr. Majed Al Ansari described the comments “as unacceptable and provocative for the Qatari people”.
Dr. Al Ansari stressed that “it was unacceptable for politicians to try and score political points locally at the expense of their relations with other countries.”
“Qatar is currently preparing to be a hub for civilised communication and the promotion of understanding among world nations in a frame of mutual respect during the World Cup,” the foreign ministry statement added, citing Dr Al Ansari.
Doha has received ongoing criticism for its track record in its treatment of migrant workers, with scrutiny exacerbating in recent weeks as the World Cup looms around the corner. Some of the recent criticism has also focused on its stance on LGBTQ.
Responding to the incident between Berlin and Doha, former German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Sigmar Gabriel slammed the “German arrogance towards Qatar”.
“How forgetful are we? Homosexuality was a punishable offense in Germany until 1994. My mother still needed her husband’s permission to work. We treated ‘guest workers’ crappy and housed them miserably,” tweeted Gabriel.
The former German vice-Chancellor also said it took Germany “decades to become a liberal country.”
“Progress does not come overnight, but step by step. That was true for and is true for Qatar now. The UN, the ILO [International Labour Organization] praise the country for its reforms. Only we Germans insult it every day,” he added.
The latest criticism by the German interior minister came just days after Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani slammed what he described as “ferocious” attacks against Qatar since it won the bid to host the World Cup.
The amir said that “no other host nation” has faced this level of criticism.
“Since we were chosen to host the World Cup, Qatar has had to deal with a campaign that has never been experienced by a host country before. And we initially handled it in good faith while thinking that some of the criticism was constructive and helpful, Sheikh Tamim said on Tuesday before the Shura Council.
Even if the criticism has assisted the country in “improving sections that needed development,” the leader of Qatar acknowledged that the campaign has expanded to include slander.
The campaign has continued, developed, and contains slander and double standards to the point that many, unhappily, have begun to wonder about the genuine motivations and goals behind it, Sheikh Tamim said.
