On November 20, 2022, the emblem of the Qatar 2022 World Cup appeared at the opening ceremony. On the same day, the opening ceremony of the 2022 Qatar World Cup was held at the Gulf Stadium. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
The curtain of the 2022 FIFA World Cup has opened in Qatar, and with the theme song of this World Cup "Dreamer", which dignitaries from all over the world have appeared?
In fact, shortly after the brief but grand opening ceremony, Qatar's Al Jazeera pulled out a long list of international dignitaries attending the ceremony.
The list includes 3 leaders of multinational organizations such as UN Secretary-General Guterres, IOC President Bach, and FIFA President Gianni Giannino Infantino; King Abdullah II of Jordan, President Teben of Algeria, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, President Erdogan of Turkey, President Macky Sall of Senegal, President Kagame of Rwanda, President Weah of Liberia and other seven heads of state; There are three heads of government including Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed Mohammed, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, and Mikati, Prime Minister of the Lebanese Caretaker Cabinet.
There are also six crown princes, deputy heads of state and special envoys of the head of state, including Crown Prince Sabah of Kuwait, Saeed, representative of the Sultan of Oman, Vice President Borrero of Ecuador, Leviking, Special Envoy of the President of the Russian Federation, Naidu of India, and Vice President Rodriguez of Venezuela, as well as guests at the level of "quasi-international leaders" such as Palestinian National Authority leader Abbas. There are also many international guests at the level of ministers and ambassadors.
What information and signals does this detailed list of countries send?
On November 20, 2022, the Qatar World Cup mascot appeared at the opening ceremony. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
Qatar deliberately rewarded Turkey with a "C position"
In general, as the first World Cup football tournament held by Arab countries, the international community still gave Qatar the corresponding courtesy of the World Cup.
In particular, the "troika" of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the President of the International Olympic Committee and the President of FIFA gathered together, which also made the preparations for the early efforts of Qatar, known as the "smallest host country in history", not in vain. The "cold scene" that was once feared before the opening did not appear.
However, in the "troika", the president of the IOC and the president of FIFA are the heads of the "governing international organizations", and attending the opening ceremony of such a grand event is actually fulfilling their obligations; It is not surprising that the Secretary-General of the United Nations is detached and impartial, and it is not surprising that he is in full swing, but the list of senior leaders of the countries with as many as 18 members inevitably contains tacit "small words".
Among them, the most concerned is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He actually finalized the itinerary almost at the last minute.
As many people know, due to political, economic, cultural and other contradictions, especially in the Islamic world to compete for the right to speak, the six Arab monarchies of the Gulf that were originally "monolithic" had fierce internal disputes in 2017, forming two opposing camps with Saudi Arabia on one side and Qatar on the other.
In these two camps, Saudi Arabia is the "GCC" alliance leader, and it is the Wahhabi base camp and the guardian of the two holy places of Mecca and Medina, plus the national strength, military strength and financial resources are far above Qatar, so after the contradiction heats up, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, and Kuwait all sided with Saudi Arabia.
In June 2017, when Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates led the blockade, embargo and sanctions against Qatar, as many as 13 Arab countries signed up. At that time, the only major countries in the region who clearly sided with Qatar was Erdogan's Turkey.
The vast majority of analysts know that as a geopolitical master, Erdogan stands in line this time, but does not want Saudi Arabia to monopolize the voice of the Arab and even Islamic world by suppressing the "rising star" Qatar. But for Qatar, which was besieged at the time, Turkey and Erdogan's performance was a blessing.
Today, although the World Cup in Qatar is still not immune to doubts and criticism from many parties, the most difficult days have passed after all. The original intention of bidding for the World Cup - to make Qatar famous has been largely realized, and it is also the meaning of the title to return the favor and give Erdogan a "C position" at this moment.
On November 20, 2022, the mascots of the previous FIFA World Cup appeared at the opening ceremony of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
"Great Arab solidarity" is just the beginning
Among the "national guests" attending the meeting, more than half are Arab leaders, and among them is the "helmsman" who led the attack on Qatar - the Saudi crown prince.
Most of the other Arab dignitaries attending the opening ceremony, such as the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and the president of Egypt, are close to Saudi Arabia and are representatives of countries that participated in the containment and isolation of Qatar.
At the beginning, the spats of "incompatible" were still in the ears, but now a group of white-clothed dignitaries gathered in Qatar to talk and laugh at the opening ceremony, which once again confirmed the eternal iron law of the Arab world that "brothers will also build walls, and walls are also brothers".
Saudi Arabia and Qatar could have blushed their faces in the face of competing for the right to speak, but now the times have changed, and the leading figures of the two countries hope to restore the GCC "unity and harmony" and maximize profits in the changing international political arena, shopping malls, energy markets and geopolitical arenas.
Therefore, on the eve of the opening of the Qatar World Cup, the Saudi crown prince, the leader who isolated Qatar, enthusiastically shouted the slogan of "great unity of the Arab world" and advocated that "Arab brothers" be warmly held.
In contrast, the sources of other participating international dignitaries in this World Cup are quite intriguing.
In the past, the opening ceremony of the World Cup was generally maintained at a relatively balanced proportion of dignitaries from European and American countries and third world countries, but this time, in addition to representatives of international organizations, Arab and Muslim countries, almost all the "national guests" attending the meeting were dignitaries from developing countries in "Asia, Africa and Latin America".
Before the opening ceremony of this World Cup, Europe and the United States insisted on their own opinions on such aspects as "respecting their own customs", lest "too much enthusiasm" for the Qatar World Cup would anger these local voters and lead to a loss of points in their own domestic politics.
France's Deseli (centre) brings the Hercules Cup to the Gulf Stadium on November 20, 2022, at the opening ceremony of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
Of course, there are also some international dignitaries whose motives may be relatively pure, such as Liberian President Weah. The former World Footballer of the Year, the first retired football star in human history to be elected head of state, is news that he did not go to the opening ceremony of the World Cup.
Since the Camp David Accords led to the division of the Arab world, it is no longer possible for the Arab world, which relied on "Arab solidarity" during the "October War" in 1973 to severely damage the European and American economies with the "petrodollar".
Although the "Arab Spring" led to the retreat of secular Arab political forces represented by Egypt, Iraq, Tunisia, etc., and the rise of Arab status represented by the "GCC", the subsequent dispute between Saudi Arabia and Qatar and the divergence of Arab opinions on the Palestinian-Israeli issue made the long-lost "great Arab unity" belated.
Now, as the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States cools, the value of OPEC's discourse power has increased, and the once quarreling "GCC" countries seem to have re-recognized the value and importance of "fraternal peace".
As a result, we see Saudi Arabia and Qatar meeting each other, and we see the "Arab family" on the rostrum of the opening ceremony of the World Cup in Qatar – perhaps this is just a sign and signal, and the "Arab solidarity" on the Doha football field is only the beginning.
Written by / Tao Short Room (Columnist)
Editor / He Rui
Proofreading / Liu Jun