The State of Qatar participated on Tuesday in the international ministerial conference on United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Brussels.

The State of Qatar was represented at the conference by HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi.

In the State of Qatar's speech, His Excellency said that the conference represents another occasion to confirm Qatar's firm stance towards the justice of the Palestinian cause, the rights of the Palestinian people to recover their occupied lands and the right to return and to live in safety and peace, under an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital on the 1967 borders.

HE the Minister added that from this standpoint, the State of Qatar and the responsible international community stand by UNRWA and respond to provide the necessary resources to serve Palestinian refugees and provide the most basic necessities of human life, at home and abroad.

In this context, HE the Minister expressed Qatar's appreciation for the UN decision in Dec. 2019 to extend the mandate of UNRWA, and its appreciation for the US administration's decision to return its support to the agency's budget starting this year.

His Excellency said that it is a matter of pride that Qatar is the first Arab state to support UNRWA's resources, and to be a member of its advisory board, as it has provided more than USD 100 million in support in the past five years.

Based on the firm position of the State of Qatar in standing by the brotherly Palestinian people, His Excellency announced that the Director General of Qatar Fund for Development and the Commissioner-General of UNRWA signed a support agreement in November in the amount of USD 25 million as a multi-year contribution to support the UNRWA's core resources, in addition to other projects in the health, education and other sectors.

HE the Minister renewed his thanks and appreciation to all participants in the conference, and the efforts made to support UNRWA.