Qatar PM Calls Iran War Fallout an ‘Earthquake’ as Doha Unveils $38B Investment Pledge
NEW YORK —Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, warned that the economic and strategic shock waves from the US-Israel war on Iran are being felt far beyond the Middle East, describing the fallout as an “earthquake” that has unsettled assumptions about security and stability.
Speaking Sunday at the opening of the Qatar Economic Forum’s UN General Assembly-adjacent event in New York, Sheikh Mohammed, who also serves as Qatar’s foreign minister, called on states to respect sovereignty as a condition for security in the region and cautioned against “cycles of escalation.”
He said the Middle East needs a “framework in which sovereignty is respected” and no state can pose a “threat to another.” The remarks came as world leaders gathered for the annual UNGA session, with the region’s crises set to dominate speeches and diplomatic meetings.
Sheikh Mohammed described the war’s economic fallout as an “earthquake” whose “shock waves” are challenging long-held assumptions about security and stability. During the crisis, he said, almost every conversation began with security and de-escalation before turning to energy supplies, shipping routes and investment plans.
“These were different expressions of the same question,” he said. “When so much is being disrupted, what can still be relied upon?”
Qatar has weathered the test to the foundations of its economy and security, Sheikh Mohammed said, while acknowledging that the ongoing conflict in the region is still having an impact. Permanent security, he argued, cannot be built through arrangements that leave any state permanently exposed to insecurity.
“We must address the sources of tensions and build confidence,” he said.
Al Jazeera’s Kristen Saloomey, reporting from New York, said the message is likely to be repeated on Tuesday when Gulf leaders meet US President Donald Trump during the UN General Assembly. The UNGA begins Monday and ends Friday, with the Middle East and its global ramifications expected to be high on the agenda.
Alongside the diplomatic appeal, Sheikh Mohammed outlined a domestic shift in Qatar’s investment strategy, pledging more than $38bn in spending on Qatari infrastructure over the next five years. Saloomey said the plan is intended to attract private investors and project a message of Qatar’s resilience, even as the prime minister acknowledges the conflict’s regional impact.
Also on Sunday, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Majed Al-Ansari, told US media in New York that his government’s mediation efforts are ongoing to restart talks between Tehran and Washington aimed at ending the US-Israel war on Iran.