Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, has described the impact of the ongoing United States-Israel war with Iran as an “earthquake”, warning that its consequences have extended far beyond the Middle East.
Sheikh Mohammed made the remarks on Sunday at the opening of a special Qatar Economic Forum event held in New York on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly. He called for a regional security framework based on respect for national sovereignty and warned against repeated cycles of escalation.
According to the Qatari premier, the conflict had disrupted assumptions about security and stability while creating wider concerns over energy supplies, shipping routes and economic investment.
He said discussions during the crisis routinely began with security concerns before moving to questions surrounding energy supplies and international shipping, highlighting the close relationship between geopolitical stability and economic security.
“Permanent security cannot be built through arrangements that leave any state permanently exposed to insecurity,” Sheikh Mohammed said, according to Al Jazeera, stressing the need to address the underlying sources of regional tensions and build confidence among countries.
The Qatari leader called on states in the region to respect one another’s sovereignty and ensure that no country poses a threat to another.
His comments came as the war continues to generate repercussions across the Gulf and global economy. The conflict has affected major energy and shipping routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passage for international energy trade. Reuters reported on Sunday that the conflict and the resulting disruption to the waterway have placed significant pressure on Gulf energy exports.
Qatar, which has played a mediation role between the United States and Iran, is also continuing diplomatic efforts aimed at reopening negotiations.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Majed Al-Ansari, said in New York on Sunday that Doha’s mediation efforts were ongoing as it sought to help restart talks between Washington and Tehran.
The diplomatic efforts come after Iran conveyed conditions to the United States through Qatari mediators for ending the conflict. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary, Mohsen Rezaei, told Al Jazeera that Tehran had communicated demands including an end to the war, the release of frozen Iranian funds and an end to the naval blockade.
The conflict has also created economic pressures for Qatar itself. Sheikh Mohammed announced plans for more than $38bn in domestic infrastructure investment over the next five years, describing the spending as part of an effort to strengthen the country’s economic resilience and attract private investment.
The announcement represents a shift in emphasis for Qatar’s sovereign wealth investment strategy, with the country seeking to strengthen its domestic economy amid uncertainty surrounding regional trade and energy flows.
The Prime Minister’s comments came as world leaders began gathering in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, where the Middle East conflict is expected to be one of the major issues dominating diplomatic discussions.
The UN gathering is bringing together nearly 130 heads of state and government, with the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine among the major issues confronting the international community.
For Qatar, the emphasis remains on diplomacy and de-escalation. Sheikh Mohammed said the region needed to move away from repeated confrontations and instead establish conditions in which sovereignty, security and economic stability could coexist.
He said Qatar would continue working with regional and international partners to keep communication channels open and support efforts aimed at reducing tensions.
The Qatari leader’s warning comes at a time when the conflict’s effects are increasingly being felt beyond the countries directly involved, with disruptions to energy supplies, shipping and investment adding to concerns about wider global economic consequences.
