Global News Post: Qatar

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">DOHA (NNN-QNA) -- The Qatar National Bank (QNB) has been named one of the World’s 50 Safest Banks and one of the Safest Banks in the Middle East, according to the latest update published by Global Finance in April 2012. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The ranking was created through an evaluation of long-term credit ratings from Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings and total assets of the 500 largest banks worldwide. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The World’s 50 Safest Banks ranking is a recognized and trusted standard of credit-worthiness for the entire financial world. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The QNB Group’s leading role in the banking sector and the high quality of its assets, along with its capabilities to achieve sustained growth in all activities, are demonstrated clearly in its credit ratings, with Standard & Poor’s (A long term, A1 short term, stable), Fitch (A long term, A1 short term, stable) and Moody’s (Aa3 long term, P1 short term, stable) affirming the bank’s ratings during 2011, which are among the highest in the region. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: HI; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The QNB was established in 1964 as the country’s first Qatari-owned commercial bank. It has an ownership structure split between the Qatar Investment Authority (50 per cent) and the private sector (50 per cent). -- NNN-QNA<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Qatar National Bank Named One of the World's 50 Safest Banks

DOHA (NNN-QNA) -- The Qatar National Bank (QNB) has been named one of the World’s 50 Safest Banks and one of the Safest Banks in the Middl...

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 9.0pt;">By <a href="http://www.groundreport.com/armscuncolim"><span>Armscuncolim</span></a><span>    </span><span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: green; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Koreas to field unified team at historic Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup in Qatar<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: green; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Doha</st1:place></st1:city> on November 21 and 22<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><st1:city w:st="on"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Doha</span></st1:city><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> <st1:country-region w:st="on">Qatar</st1:country-region>: <span> </span>Forty years after a week of table tennis exhibition matches helped restore relations between the <st1:country-region w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region w:st="on">China</st1:country-region>, Ping Pong Diplomacy is making a comeback at a table tennis tournament in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Qatar</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup, the first of its kind for any sport, aims at encouraging dialogue and good relations between nations and will take place in Qatari capital <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Doha</st1:place></st1:city> on November 21 and 22.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Ping Pong diplomacy refers to the exchange of table tennis players between the <st1:country-region w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region> and People's Republic of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region><span>  </span>in the 1970s.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In 1971, amid escalating Cold War rhetoric, an American table tennis team went to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>. The matches helped open <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> to the world and paved the way for a groundbreaking visit from US President Richard Nixon the following year, when the countries established diplomatic channels.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Twelve nations have confirmed their participation at the event which aims at encouraging dialogue and good relations between nations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><st1:country-region w:st="on"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">India</span></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> and <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>, the two <st1:country-region w:st="on">Koreas</st1:country-region>, US and <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region> are some of the countries, which are in conflict with each other, have confirmed their entry for the two –day tournament. The two <st1:country-region w:st="on">Koreas</st1:country-region> will be fielding a unified team in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Qatar</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In table tennis, the <st1:country-region w:st="on">Koreas</st1:country-region> last formed a joint team at the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Chiba City</st1:city>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Japan</st1:country-region></st1:place>, and won the gold in the women’s team event.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The twelve nations<span>  </span>which have confirmed their participation for the tournament are North Korea, South Korea, Japan, China, Russia, the US, France, Great Britain, India, Pakistan, Iran and hosts Qatar, an International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) official confirmed here yesterday.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Organized by the Qatar Tennis Table Association (QTTA) with the support of the Qatar Olympic Committee, under the leadership of ITTF and the guidance of Peace and Sport, the event is seen as an unprecedented sports event that will break political tensions and unite nations. The Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup will use the power and core values of sport as a driving force to promote peace and unity.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The two-day tournament will take place at <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Aspire</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Academy</st1:placetype></st1:place> and carries prize money of $100,000. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The tournament is one of the several high profile events that <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Qatar</st1:place></st1:country-region> is planning to host in the coming years.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Besides the 2022 Football World Cup, <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Qatar</st1:place></st1:country-region> is bidding to host the 2020 Olympics and the 2017 IAAF World Championship of International Association of Athletics Federations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><span> </span>ITTF President, Adham Sharara said that the tournament aims to build new friendship between different nations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“The competition aims to promote world peace and Table Tennis is the first sport to actually have this kind of event. The event will see players compete over two days before an audience of key government officials and diplomats from 12 competing nations. Players will compete in men's and women's singles, doubles and mixed doubles. In the doubles events, partnerships will be created with players from different nations symbolizing the unifying objectives of the event,” said the Egyptian-born Canadian citizen, who has been President of ITTF since 1999.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“The Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup will witness teams composed of exceptional duos that will make an indelible mark on our memories and turn these athletes into genuine ambassadors of global peace,” Sharara said.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“Sport goes far beyond competitions and games. Many historic and recent examples demonstrate that it acts as a major political lever that can serve as a mediator in the international diplomatic arena,” Joël Bouzou, President and Founder of Peace and Sport, said.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“This is the driving ambition of this tournament which I hope will allow us to reach a stage where we can bury the quarrels of the past, encourage dialogue between certain countries and more globally, promote mutual understanding and peace,” he added.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">QTTA Technical Advisor Zlatko Cordas said the tournament would be a milestone in the nation’s sports history.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">“We’ve hosted the world’s top players in our country, during the Qatar Open, but this’ll be a much more important tournament. It’ll be a milestone event. We’ve already received participation confirmation from 12 countries and it’ll be widely covered by the world media,” said Cordas.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Hamad Al Hamadi, Secretary General of QTTA and Manager of Sport and Peace Championship held a co-ordination meeting with representatives of participating countries here last week for the smooth conduct of the tournament. ---<a href="http://www.groundreport.com/World/Pingpong-Diplomacy-to-be-revived-at-Qatar-tourname/2941660"><span>Ground Report</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">This work is licensed under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/"><span>Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License</span></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div>

Pingpong Diplomacy to be revived at Qatar tournament

By Armscuncolim Koreas to field unified team at historic Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup in Qatar Peace and Sport Table Tenn...

Qatar National Bank Named One of the World's 50 Safest Banks

Qatar Police Interrogate Nepal Minister at Doha Airport sia

Pingpong Diplomacy to be revived at Qatar tournament