New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to Qatar’s emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and said that they both agreed to jointly celebrate 50 years of India-Qatar diplomatic relations in 2023.
PM Modi also conveyed him his best wishes for a successful football World Cup in Qatar.
In a tweet, PM Modi said: Was happy to speak with HH Amir @TamimBinHamad of Qatar.
“Thanked him for his gracious Diwali greetings, and conveyed best wishes for a successful FIFA World Cup in Qatar.”
“We agreed to jointly celebrate 50 yrs of India-Qatar diplomatic relations in 2023,” PM Modi added.
Was happy to speak with HH Amir @TamimBinHamad of Qatar. Thanked him for his gracious Diwali greetings, and conveyed best wishes for a successful @FIFAWorldCup in Qatar. We agreed to jointly celebrate 50 yrs of India-Qatar diplomatic relations in 2023.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 29, 2022
2022 World Cup in Qatar
World football’s governing body FIFA in 2010 awarded the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.
According to reports, the host has since spent hundreds of billions of dollars in preparation for the tournament that is due to kick off on November 20.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino, previously, said the upcoming World Cup, the first to be held in the Middle East, will be the “best ever”. Approximately 1.2 million fans are expected to visit the country during the tournament.
According to a Al Jazeera report, organisers said that 2.89 million tickets have been sold so far. Besides the host country, the United States, Saudi Arabia, England, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, France, Brazil and Germany recorded the highest ticket demand for the tournament.
Football’s most prestigious tournament, the FIFA World Cup is traditionally held over the summer months but it is being played in November and December this year due to the weather in Qatar having excessive heat over summer.