British official reaffirms strength of Qatari-British relations

With regard to the exemption of Qatari citizens from entry visa to Britain and possibility of circulating it to the rest of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) countries , Hon Hugh Robertson, the British MP,the Minister of State in the Foreign office who is in charge of the Middle East, North African affairs said that the State of Qatar, the UAE and Oman were first exempted from the requirements of an entry visa to Britain. Touching on the relations of British - Gulf relations, the British MP described it as deeply rooted and are now in their best shape , especially in the framework of the Gulf initiative , which is made up of a number of working groups, each acting separately ,stressing that the British Foreign Office seeks to strengthen these relations with all countries in the region so as to achieve common interests . Robertson pointed out that no one can claim that the Geneva II conference will be easy because of the ongoing conflict in Syria ,saying it depends on the genuine desire of the disputing parties to reach a peace agreement ending the conflict. The British MP added that the success of the Geneva II conference depends on efforts exerted on part of everyone, including the Western countries and the United States and its allies in the region. He stressed that all parties are making efforts to persuade the disputing parties to sit down at the negotiating table in order to reach a final agreement. Robertson went on to say that he had visited Israel and Jordan last November and he was in close contact with the team work of the U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, indicating that there is a sense of optimism about the potential for development in the Middle East peace process, but at the same time he stressed that there are difficulties facing this process.