Relations between Qatar and the UK

This file concerns Qatar’s relations with the UK. It contains letters, correspondence and memoranda relating to:

• A cutting in the Times, stating that the British Council’s operations in the Gulf may be at risk as a result of the £1.2 million cut in its budget
• The Amir of Qatar Sheikh Khalifa Bin Hamad Al Thani’s visit to the UK, during which he donated £250,000 to a cancer research clinic in London
• The British Museum’s wish for Qatar to pay towards the rehousing of some of their Arabian antiques. It includes a plan of the Museum, in which the exhibitions that will be involved have been marked
• Qatar’s interest in a vintage British naval canon. It includes a sketch of the canon
• The Qatari Government’s wish for HM Embassy in Doha to help them find a candidate who can translate some of William Shakespeare’s plays into Arabic; and the Embassy’s suggestion that Ben Strachen should assist the Qataris with this matter
• A letter from Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to Amir Khalifa, thanking him for his condolences after the Brighton bomb explosion
• The Qatari Government’s decision to accept HM Ambassador in Doha’ s offer of a sculpture to be donated by the British community and sited on the Doha Corniche
• Qatar’s unwillingness to receive official visitors during Ramadan
• Amir Khalifa’s proposed visits to Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong
• The fall in UK oil production from Qatar during 1983.