Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, arrived in Bishkek on a state visit to the Kyrgyz Republic, during which H H held talks session with President of the Kyrgyz Republic H E Sadyr Japarov, pertaining the bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and ways to support and enhance them in various fields.
The talks session also addressed raising the level of consultation and coordination between Doha and Bishkek in international forums regarding various current issues of mutual interest, in addition to issues affecting international security and stability.
The visit of H H the Amir to Bishkek and the discussions, agreements and memorandums of understanding to be signed, is expected to contribute to supporting and developing relations between the two countries and opening new horizons for them, which will strengthen ties and relations as well as cooperation between the two parties, and contribute to finding more promising opportunities for signing new investment and development partnerships between the public and private sectors of the two countries, depending on the available capabilities and facilities provided by the two countries for foreign investments.
The friendship and cooperation relations between the two countries are characterized as strong and solid relations that reflect the keenness of the leaderships of the two countries to develop them in various fields.
Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established on March 3, 1998, and the Qatari embassy was opened in Bishkek on Oct. 2, 2012. Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Kyrgyz Republic presented his credentials to HE President of the Kyrgyz Republic on Oct. 30, 2013, and the Kyrgyz Republic opened its embassy in Doha in September 2015, while Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic presented his credentials to H H the Amir on March 3, 2016.
Since that date, relations between the two friendly countries have developed at a rapid pace, as official visits were intensively exchanged at various levels. In this context, the former Kyrgyz President H E Almazbek Atambayev paid two visits to Doha during the years 2014 and 2015, where H H Amir received him and held official talks with him on bilateral relations between the two countries and ways to enhance, support and develop them in various fields, especially economic and investment, in addition to reviewing several issues of mutual interest.
The Amir and former Kyrgyz President witnessed the signing of several agreements and memoranda of understanding between the governments of the two countries. President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov, visited Doha on December 2022 to attend the final match of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which brought together the national teams of France and Argentina at Lusail Stadium.
Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, paid a visit to the Kyrgyz Republic in September 2015, during which he discussed bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and ways to support and enhance them, especially in the economic field. H E also headed the delegation of the State of Qatar to discuss investment opportunities in the Kyrgyz Republic, which included representatives of the Ministry of Economy and Commerce, Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) and Qatar Mining Company. During the visit, Qatar’s delegation met with representatives of investment agencies in Kyrgyz Republic, representatives of the Ministries of Energy and Agriculture, the Municipality, the Minerals Company, the State Committee for Minerals and the National Bank, representatives of these companies presented areas in which the State of Qatar can invest, especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and energy. The exchanged and extensive official visits also included ministers representing the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Culture, Sports, Interior Affairs, Civil Defense, Tourism, and Information.
Relations between the two countries are regulated by a set of agreements and memoranda of understanding that include political, economic, commercial, industrial, tourism, educational, civil aviation, and mutual exemption of entry visas for holders of diplomatic and private passports, encouragement and protection of mutual investments and twinning between Doha and Bishkek, news exchange between Qatar News Agency and Kyrgyz National News Agency, avoidance of double taxation and prevention of financial evasion with regard to taxes on income.
In the political context, two rounds of political consultations were held between the two countries, the first in Bishkek in February 2018, and the second in Doha in January 2019.
On the economic side, in March 2017, the first session of the Qatari-Kyrgyz Joint Committee on Economic, Commercial and Technical Cooperation, was held in Doha, during which official talks were held and aspects of cooperation in various sectors of mutual interest between the two friendly countries were discussed.
In April 2017, Qatar Chamber hosted a Kyrgyz trade delegation to discuss ways to strengthen economic relations, present available investment opportunities, and discuss establishing business partnerships between Qatari businesspersons and their Kyrgyz counterparts in various fields.
The State of Qatar has provided medical aid to the Kyrgyz Republic to help it confront the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and to support the health sector in the Kyrgyz Republic to confront the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and to strengthen the friendly relations between the two countries.
Based on its humanitarian mission in the friendly Kyrgyz Republic, and in cooperation with Qatar Charity, the State of Qatar is implementing many humanitarian and development projects and programs in the Kyrgyz Republic, including building health centers, schools, homes for the poor, economic empowerment projects, water projects and childcare, as well as implementing a set of relief interventions in both the health sector and the food security sector. The Qatar Red Crescent has also implemented many humanitarian projects in the Kyrgyz Republic.
In June 2021, the Kyrgyz Republic honored Qatar Charity by awarding it a medal of honor and a certificate of honor, in recognition of its great contribution to promoting social development and its active role in implementing developmental charitable projects in the fields of health care, education, and cultural and humanitarian cooperation there.
Within the framework of cultural cooperation between the two countries, and in implementation of the cooperation agreement signed between them in 2014, and to introduce Qatari culture, the activities of the Qatari Cultural Days were organized in the Kyrgyz Republic in May 2017, including a group of cultural and heritage events that introduce the Kyrgyz public to the cultural diversity of the State of Qatar.
On the other hand, last March, a ceremony was held on the drama stage in the Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) about the Kyrgyz culture through music, patterns, and ornaments, on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the State of Qatar and the Kyrgyz Republic.
