Qatar, Council of Europe activate pact to support standards of security in football

DOHA: The Council of Europe has affirmed the importance of the first coordination meeting held in Doha to activate the bilateral agreement (2018-2020) between the State of Qatar and the Council under the European convention on safety, security and integrated service in football matches and other sports events known as ‘St Denis Convention’.

The Council of Europe’s Head of Sports Conventions Division Sergey Khrychikov said that this meeting will give the State of Qatar a global rating in the security and safety operations, which contributes to the organisation of a safe World Cup during the next edition to be hosted by Doha in 2022, pointing out that the State of Qatar is to join St Denis Convention, two years after the start of the implementation of the partnership program with the Council, in order to become an active member of the Convention, QNA has reported.

In a statement on the sidelines of the meeting, Khrychikov said that the State of Qatar will benefit greatly from joining the Convention through the experience it will gain by creating partnerships with global players that have a legacy in organising major sporting events, especially as the Convention aims to combat violence and misconduct within stadiums and ensure Public safety.

He said the meeting discussed many issues related to the Council of Europe’s agreements on sports activity with particular emphasis on football. He said all 48 members of the Council of Europe respect the Council’s agreements and seek to implement them. He noted Qatar has become an observer member of the European convention on public violence and it has started the process to join the Council of Europe’s convention on security, safety and integrated services for major sporting events, especially football, which is an extension of the convention on public violence, which is expected to replace it by the end of the year, as it entered into force in mid-2018.

He said the Council has partnerships with FIFA, UEFA, Interpol and Europol to achieve the highest standards of safety and security. He noted in the same context that the Council has partnerships with countries hosting major sporting events, where the Council contributed many recommendations to the Organizing Committee of the World Cup Russia contributed to the highest standards of security and safety during the hosting of the 2018 World Cup.

The first coordination meeting was held at the headquarters of Security Committee at the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) to activate the bilateral agreement (2018-2020) between the State of Qatar and the Council of Europe in the presence of the Delegation of the Council of Europe and representatives of SC, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Culture and Sports, Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya), Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), Qatar Football Association (QFA), where a presentation was made of the partnership framework, which also targets all the Council of Europe conventions related to sports, such as the convention on public violence, in which Qatar has already become an observer member and the anti-doping and game-manipulation conventions.

In late March, Qatar signed a bilateral agreement (2018-2020) for technical cooperation with the Council of Europe in the framework of the European convention on safety, security and integrated service in football and other sports activities (Charter of Signatures and Ratifications of Treaties No. 218) known as ‘St Denis Convention’.

The agreement came after the adoption of Qatar as an observer member of the Council of Europe, as the first Arab country in this Council, which consists of 48 members at the level of foreign ministers.

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