DOHA: A German minister whose comments sparked a diplomatic storm with Qatar was briefed on the World Cup host’s rights record after arriving in the Gulf state on Monday, diplomats said.
Germany’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser arrived in Doha just three days after Qatar’s foreign ministry summoned Germany’s ambassador to protest over her comments casting doubt on whether Qatar should stage the tournament.
Faeser and Germany’s football federation chief Bernd Neuendorf met union representatives and officials from the UN’s International Labour Organisation after flying in, diplomats told AFP.
German deputies are also in the delegation but the government’s human rights commissioner Luise Amtsberg pulled out of the visit on Sunday.
Faeser was also set to meet with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, and FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
Germany’s ambassador to Doha was summoned after Faeser said in a television interview that holding the World Cup in Qatar was “very tricky” from Berlin’s perspective.
“It would be better that tournaments are not awarded to such states,“ she added.
Qatar, an increasingly important natural gas supplier for Europe, has become increasingly sensitive to criticism of its treatment of migrant workers, as well as rights for the LGBTQ community and women.
The Gulf state, which says its reforms have been ignored by critics, called Faeser’s remarks “unacceptable and provocative”. The Gulf Cooperation Council also condemned the comments.-AFP
