Standing tall like Caesar? Qatar’s unwavering voice for Palestine at the United Nations

Abstract

This article examines the complexities of Qatar’s Palestine policy, emphasising Doha’s multifaceted role as a mediator, problem-solver, humanitarian aid provider, and representative of the Palestinian issue at the United Nations. The study employs a mixed-methods research approach. Firstly, it utilises qualitative data from official statements, key policymakers’ remarks, and literature on Qatar’s foreign policy and Palestinian engagement. Secondly, it introduces text analytic methods such as latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) topic modelling, word clouds and network analysis to identify key themes, relationships and trends in Qatar’s speeches. The findings reveal that the Palestinian issue has been a prominent and consistent topic in Qatar’s United Nations General Assembly General Debate addresses over the past five decades. Qatar has consistently advocated for a resolution to the conflict, emphasising the importance of peace, justice and the two-state solution. Qatar’s support for Palestine remains steadfast, despite pressure from other regional actors to end its engagement with Hamas and divert its attention from the Palestinian issue. This commitment to the Palestinian cause aligns with Qatar’s broader state preferences for an independent foreign policy, its opposition to external interference, and its aspiration to restore its role as a trusted international partner on global platforms.