Business binds Doha to Turkey

Qatar’s economic links with Turkey have intensified in recent years, enmeshing Qatari investors with Turkish businesses in sectors ranging from energy to financial services. The two countries paved the way for closer economic ties more than five years ago, with the removal of double taxation in 2008, followed by a 2009 agreement abolishing visa requirements for each other’s citizens. In 2008, the countries signed a memorandum of understanding to co-operate on energy affairs, and, in the past year, Qatar has provided Turkey with spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to help sate the country’s spiralling gas demand.