Development key to fighting instability, says UAE Foreign Minister

Manama: UAE Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has said development is the key to security in the region as he congratulated Qatar on winning the 2022 bid to host the Fifa World Cup.

Addressing delegates and journalists during the Manama Dialogue, Shaikh Abdullah said Qatar's victory was a testament that positive forces are at work in the Gulf that contribute to the defeat of instability in the region.

The UAE firmly believes that you cannot fight an ideological war without changing mindsets, Shaikh Abdullah said.

"We must excite people about the future and empower women. Everyone should have a stake," he said.

On the Palestinian issue, he said that they need assistance in institution building but warned that regional forces have manipulated the plight of the Palestinians to sow instability.

"The UAE believes that solving the Palestinian issue will be a game changer and have positive spillover effect in the Middle East," he said.

Shaikh Abdullah said that Afghanistan and Yemen are two countries of vital interest to the UAE and it will continue its assistance to them in their struggle against terror.