Prime Minister Gonsalves Signs Agreement With Qatar Civil Aviation Authority Representative

On Thursday, 12th May, 2016, Prime Minister Dr. Hon. Ralph Gonsalves signed an air services agreement with the Head of Agreements and International Relations, Department of Air Transport and Airport Affairs, Mohammed Faleh Alhajri of the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority.
Mohammed Faleh Alhajri was accompanied to St. Vincent and the Grenadines was Senior Legal Researcher, Essa Abdulla Al-Malki. The signing ceremony took place at cabinet room.
After the signing, Prime Minister Gonsalves expressed gratitude to the Qatar Government for offering their services to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. According to Dr. Gonsalves, Alhajri will “secure the approval of his Cabinet” on his return to Qatar. Likewise, Prime Minister Gonsalves will seek the approval of Cabinet in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on the agreement. Dr. Gonsalves added that he would be invited to Qatar for formal signing in that country.
To this end, Prime Minister Gonsalves extended gratitude to the Emir of Qatar and his Government for coming to an agreement with the Government and people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, on air services. He also expressed gratitude to the “technical persons from Qatar and also from St. Vincent and the Grenadines for their tremendous work in concluding the memorandum and the agreement.”
The construction of the Argyle International Airport is at hand highlighted Dr. Gonsalves, as is its opening and operations. He further explained that it is important for the country to have air services agreements “with a number of countries with which we are friendly and which have shown interest in the development of our country and for us to have this as the framework for the actual, possible operations of air services”.
In reply, Head of Agreements and International Relations, Department of Air Transport and Airport Affairs, Mohammed Faleh Alhajri, extended thanks to Prime Minister Gonsalves for “his warm reception and kind hospitality”. According to Alhajri, the agreement will allow airlines to operate any number of flights between the State of Qatar and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, without any restrictions.
In his concluding remarks, Alhajri expressed pride in the signing of the air services with St. Vincent and the Grenadines as the State of Qatar is the first Arab country to do sign such agreement. Also, he wished the Government and people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines prosperity and progress.