United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been castigated for his praise of Qatar hosting “an incredible World Cup”.
The post on social media quickly drew criticism as Sunak was reminded of the controversies surrounding the tournament, namely the treatment of migrant workers and Qatar’s criminalisation of homosexuality.
“Hats off to Qatar for hosting an incredible World Cup so far,” Sunak wrote on Twitter.
“The group stages will be remembered as one of the all-time greats.
“Come on England keep the dream alive.”
Sunak’s comment comes two days after he spoke with the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to discuss defence collaboration and the war in Ukraine
Sunak and Al Thani are said to have agreed to work together on a potential Gulf Cooperation Council trade deal in the future.
Britain is contributing to the security operation for the World Cup in what the country’s Government has said will add “expertise and capability, in part gained through the Olympic experience in 2012.”
During the tournament, the joint British-Qatari 12 Squadron and an RAF Voyager air-to-air refuelling aircraft will help with counter-terrorism efforts.
The 12 Squadron is currently deployed to Qatar to support the formation of the Qatar Emiri Air Force’s first Typhoon group.
Qatar has recently bought 24 Typhoon and nine Hawk aircraft from BAE Systems – a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company – along with weapons, training and support in a deal worth £6 billion ($6.9 billion/€6.8 billion).
Despite Sunak’s comments, the England team have demonstrated their support for the LGBT+ community.
The squad arrived in Doha before the start of the tournament in a “Rain Bow” Virgin Atlantic A350 Airbus aircraft which was emblazoned with a Gay Pride sign.
However, they did abandon a plan to don a “OneLove” captain’s armband after FIFA threatened a yellow card for whoever wore it.
