(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula online
Doha: Qatar has always been a reliable energy source for all its partners, based on long-term contracts, and it is the policy of the country to help in whatever capacity possible, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, has said.
In an interview with Bloomberg in New York on Tuesday, the Deputy Prime Minister said that the current global energy crisis is not just because of the Russian-Ukrainian war but that there have always been issues that have not been properly addressed up till now.
'The energy crisis is not just a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict; it goes far beyond that; long-time under-investment in the sector, some policies, including trying to stop investment in hydrocarbons and the opening of power generation plants, and so on; but the situation in Ukraine has just made it worse,' Deputy Prime Minister said.
The Deputy Prime Minister noted that Qatar is currently in talks with some companies in Germany on the energy issue.
'There are negotiations taking place between Qatar Energy and some commercial entities in Germany. The state of negotiation is still ongoing. We don't know if the deal will be struck in a week or not. It is not clear yet as the issue remains with them. But as a policy of Qatar, we are trying our best to help in providing Europe or countries in need of energy with whatever capacity we have, 'he said.
On the Iranian nuclear issue, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said that Qatar is in talks with all the parties and the country is trying its best to play a constructive role in the negotiations.
'In the last couple of weeks, we've been hearing a couple of statements that are not so optimistic about reaching a deal. We've heard positive intentions from all the parties that we've engaged with in the last few days. They want to make a deal. They haven't reached an agreement yet, but I believe when the parties get together, they can find common ground for these areas of disagreement and they can reach a deal, ' he said.
He said that Qatar believes in the importance of having the deal back because it will address the concerns of everyone.
'We think that with a deal, it will stabilise the region.' 'What we believe is important is to have a deal in place, and to have a nuclear-free region,' he said.
He added that the absence of the deal is making the region seem like a more dangerous place and that it is something Qatar does not want to see happen.
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