Markus Söder calls for German military in Qatar

CSU boss Markus Söder would like to see a military presence in Qatar for closer cooperation with states in the Gulf region. It is important that Germany "at least makes itself visible here," said the Bavarian Prime Minister after a meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in the capital Doha. Söder suggested a visit from the Federal Ministry of Defense and “perhaps not troops, but technical personnel for further training issues.”

Söder said that other countries such as Great Britain and France have already taken such steps: "I think we Germans should also show our presence here." If you want to be economically successful in the long term, you need trust and security as a second component.

Investments in Bavarian companies

During his trip, the CSU boss also visited a workshop of the defense company KNDS at a military base and promoted investments in the defense sector - with a particular focus on Bavarian companies. “The defense sector is extremely important,” emphasized Söder. »It's 150 kilometers from Iran. That’s why interest in defense is simply higher than anything else.”

In connection with this, Bavaria's Prime Minister also announced an economic summit in Munich next year - similar to the one a few weeks ago with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which Söder had previously visited on his trip. Söder said they are already much further along in expanding economic relations there than with Qatar. The CSU leader also renewed his call for a free trade zone between the two countries and the EU. There is “great interest” in this in Qatar.

His trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar is primarily about tangible economic interests. The highlight in Abu Dhabi was a meeting with the President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It is the second meeting between the two in just a few weeks and a lot of money is involved: When the sheikh was in Munich in September, Bavaria and the Emirates had signed an agreement that envisaged investments of ten billion euros in Bavaria.

The German economy has been suffering for several years both from a lack of investment in the Federal Republic and from growing trade barriers with the USA and China. In this respect, both companies and politicians are now looking at other countries. In addition to India, this includes several countries in the Middle East, despite the ongoing Iran war.