Attendees at a symposium on the History of Saudi-Qatari Relations, part of the activities of the Saudi Cultural Week being held in the 2010 Capital of Arab Culture, Doha, have described the two countries as “inseparable geographically, historically and socially”. The symposium, held on Wednesday, gathered prominent cultural figures from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, who were united in their assessment of the “development of political, cultural and economic relations between the two countries”. “What unites Saudi Arabia and Qatar goes beyond the customary in nations' relations, beginning with the facts of history and geography and their unity of origin, and including their Arab and Islamic identities from which they cannot be separated in terms of land, people and history,” said symposium speaker Ali Bahkali. Bahkali said that their relations were centered on the two countries' similar political approach in spreading peace and harmony between themselves and other nations, “particularly Islamic, Arab and Gulf nations”. Mustafa Aqeel from Qatar University spoke of the various stages of development in relations from before the establishment of the Saudi state to the present day. “The firm relations between the two countries will continue whatever the circumstances in all political, social and economic areas,” Aqeel said. Hisham Murtadha of King Abdulaziz University also gave a lecture at Qatar University on traditional Saudi architecture in which he spoke of the most significant traditional buildings in the Kingdom to an audience containing, among others, the Deputy Minister of Culture and Information for International Cultural Affairs, Abu Bakr Baqadir.
