The State of Qatar continues to improve the capabilities of its Armed Forces and expand military partnerships to defend the country’s borders and maintain security and stability.
As part of this effort, the Qatari Emiri Land Forces and an Italian force carried out the bilateral military exercise Nasr 23 (or Victory) under the patronage of the Qatari Minister of State for Defence Affairs, Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah.
The October 2023 exercise aimed to raise the level of capabilities and promote efficiency and combat readiness for all specialties in the Qatari land forces.
Qatar’s military relations with Italy include equipment purchases, and in August 2017, Qatar signed a bilateral defense agreement under which Qatar’s Emiri Navy purchased seven naval vessels from Italy for $5.91 billion.
Also, the Arabian Gulf country in March 2018 signed a contract worth $3.7 billion with NHIndustries, a joint venture of Leonardo, Fokker Aerostructures and Airbus Helicopters, to acquire 28 NH90 military helicopters and 16 H125 light helicopters.
Besides military ties, Qatar has contributed to economic security in the world through energy exports. In October 2023, state-owned QatarEnergy signed an agreement to supply Italian energy company Eni with 1 million tons per year of liquified natural gas. Deliveries are expected to start in 2026 for a term of 27 years.
“Today, we are taking another important step in strengthening our partnership with Eni that will foster our mutual cooperation for many years to come,” said the Qatari Minister of Energy Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, also president and CEO of QatarEnergy.
Sources: Qatar News Agency, alkhaleejonline.net, Business Insider