75th Anniversary of the German Near and Middle East Association (NUMOV)

Berlin, 01 May 2009

Thank you former Chancellor Schroeder for your kind words. And let me congratulate you on the 75 years of Numov’s diligent work in building partnerships between your great nation and our part of the world.

Former Chancellör You mentioned that instability in our region has direct repercussions in Europe and that Europe should play a key role in negotiating a just peace in our region.

I would like to bring to your attention that the destruction of educational infrastructure in the conflict zones of our region, is having a devastating impact.

Let me stress that the deliberate attacks on schools, teachers, students, and institutes of education, as we have witnessed in Iraq and Gaza, are despicable and we ask Europe to stand firm in condemning these acts; to stand with us as we try to rebuild and recover, to offer a new hope to new generations.

I felt this hope when I walked out of my hotel this morning And was struck by the great monument before me.

A symbol of the German spirit of resilience and the resurrection of a great nation Which I am sure cannot but inspire all of us who have faced seemingly insurmountable odds.

I have had a few wonderful days in your fine country and have learned much about your state of the art educational and research institutes.

As I toured various institutes and met with some of your country’s most brilliant and energetic minds, I kept recalling the deep historical curiosity which Germany and the Arab world have had with each other.

The great German philologists dominated academic Orientalism while German historians took much interest in the historiography of Islam.

And this curiosity is evidenced in our time by the fact that over 3 and a half million Muslims today call Germany their home.

While there have always been strong cultural ties between our regions, deepening economic and trade ties in the rapidly globalized world is also becoming a top priority.

Germany is one of the most important trade partners of the State of Qatar, but given our potentialities, we can achieve much more. We must come together to strengthen research and cultural ties between Qatar and Germany and add value to our existing partnerships.

The Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP), offers an excellent opportunity for this. QSTP , an integral part of our national vision, is a research and development hub and Qatar's first free trade zone.

Over $300 million has been invested to create a world class facility. Various companies from across the world are tenants there.I invite more German companies to become partners of QSTP.

It is our aim to transform Qatar into a hydro carbon, knowledge based economy by attracting commercially-oriented research and development.

We very much respect the enormous achievements Germany has made in these areas and welcome further mutually beneficial partnerships.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The music of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, and Brahms has long been savored throughout the Arab world and so tonight is a very special night for me.

Tonight I humbly share with you a valued treasure from my home- the Qatar Symphony –the first symphonic composition written to tell the story of challenges and achievements of the state of Qatar. 

I have always believed that music is indeed a fluid vocabulary that can transcend all barriers, con brio, that can embrace peace, con amore, uphold our commonalities and reflect our differences, con spirit.

I hope tonight, you will learn more about us, as I have about you over these past few days, by sharing our musical story.