Thread by @SpencerJJoseph

Ok, let's do this again.

Qatar For Dummies 🧵

1. Qatar is a tiny country with enormous wealth from oil and gas fields. Its 330,000 citizens make up only approx 10 - 15% of the total population, with the vast majority of residents effectively working as slaves ('migrant workers').

2. While residents can apply for citizenship after 25 years in the country, the process is rarely granted and citizenship is primarily inherited from a Qatari father.

3. All broadcasting outlets in Qatar are owned by the state, and most print media outlets have close ties to the government. Al Jazeera was established and is largely funded by the Qatari government to exert regional and international influence. Many privately owned media outlets are also aligned with the government or members of the royal family.

4. Qatar is a major foreign donor to US universities, influencing policy by contributing billions of dollars in recent decades. Some of these donations have gone towards establishing branch campuses of prestigious universities within Qatar, like Weill Cornell Medical College, Texas A&M University, Georgetown University, Carnegie Mellon University, Northwestern University, and Virginia Commonwealth University.

5. Qatar has been linked to multiple high-profile allegations of bribery or corruption in recent years. One case contributed to the downfall of the Democratic senator Bob Menendez in 2024. Another centred on a group of European parliamentarians in 2022 (Qatargate). Qatar has also faced longstanding allegations surrounding its successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup.

6. Several influential media figures in America are now believed to be in the pay of Qatar, and numerous lobbying and public relations firms in the US have been employed by Qatar to advance its interests and improve its image. Some of these firms have engaged in actions that have drawn legal scrutiny, including allegedly concealing their work on behalf of Qatar, according to federal prosecutors.

Two former Republican political consultants, for example, admitted to deceiving the Justice Department about their lobbying activities for Qatar and concealing their efforts to influence US policy in the Middle East.

7. The Qataris are State financiers of jihad. The country is the world’s leading funder of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. Qatar is a patron of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and hosts high ranking operatives from Hamas, al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

It is also closely linked with the new (formerly al-Qaeda) government in Syria.

8. Qatar has acquired major brands, real estate and financial assets across The US & Europe. Qatar's acquisition of assets in the US focuses in particular on energy infrastructure and real estate through investments by QatarEnergy and the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA). Major energy investments include a $10 billion stake in ExxonMobil's Golden Pass LNG terminal and an $8 billion investment in the Golden Triangle Polymers plant.

9. Benjamin Baird’s investigation exposed the full scope of Qatar’s American enterprise : $33.4 billion into businesses and real estate; $6.25 billion to universities; $72 million to lobbyists.

This includes QIA's 9.9% stake in Empire State Realty Trust (which owns the Empire State Building), a $700 million office tower in Long Island City, New York, and the $250 million Conrad Washington D.C. hotel.

Qatar is also a major player in European real estate and finance. It is a stakeholder in European financial institutions, including a 12.7% stake in Barclays bank, minority stakes in Credit Suisse Group and Deutsche Bank, and a 10.3% stake in the London Stock Exchange Group.

Reports and government statements from The US and UK have highlighted Qatari fundraising for extremist groups in Europe between 2004 and 2019, some of which had ties to ISIS and radical preachers.

Note :

Qatar makes annual contributions to The UN of $100 million + and has co-sponsored 80%+ of anti-Israel resolutions since 2017, per UN data.

Additional note :

Russia and Qatar maintain a strong and growing partnership across various sectors, including political, economic, trade and cultural areas.

Footnote :

Qatar shares a close relationship with Iran that’s rooted in mutual opposition to Sunni-led rivals like Saudi Arabia, often forming an anti-Western axis. Al Jazeera clearly amplifies pro-Iranian narratives and anti-Israel propaganda.

Both nations train, fund and harbor Shia militias aligned with Iran, ie Hezbollah. Qatar directly finances Hamas, who collaborate with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Qatar therefore supports Iran's proxy warfare against Israel and moderate Arab states, also enabling covert arms smuggling and terrorist training networks.

Less well known is Qatar and Iran’s joint ownership of the South Pars/North Dome gas field which provides Iran with economic lifelines to evade sanctions, helping it to fund ballistic missile and nuclear programs. This interdependence masks Qatar's role in laundering Iranian funds through Doha-based banks, evading international oversight.

Further, Qatar and Iran engage in joint efforts to export their fundamentalist ideology and destabilise countries such as Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria and Lebanon through military and financial channels.

Possible solutions ?

Impose sanctions on Qatar, prohibit Qatari investment in Western infrastructure and increase use of non-fossil fuels and renewable energy.

This would impact Qatar’s influence and reduce demand for its primary exports, oil and natural gas, which account for about 90% of its export revenue and 60% of GDP.

And since there seem to be a lot of people asking for a comparison between Qatar and Israel :

Qatar is a leading exporter of oil and gas reserves, terrorism and state propaganda.

Israel is a global leader in:

Cybersecurity : Advanced solutions for data protection and threat detection.

Agtech : Precision agriculture, drip irrigation, and crop monitoring.

Medtech : Medical imaging, surgical robotics, and health IT systems.

AI and Machine Learning : Autonomous systems, natural language processing, and predictive analytics.

Defense Tech : Drones, missile defense systems, and intelligence technologies.

Semiconductors : Chip design and manufacturing technologies.

Water Tech : Desalination, water recycling, and conservation systems.

Qatar, as a foreign government, engages in US lobbying through registered firms (e.g., Squire Patton Boggs, Gray Robinson) and indirect channels like funding think tanks (e.g., $14.8 million to Brookings from 2016-2021) or universities (e.g., $300 million+ to Cornell, Texas A&M for education programs). This is often tied to policy goals, such as US-Qatar military ties, Gaza mediation, or countering regional rivals like Saudi Arabia.

Qatar has faced FARA scrutiny and fines. In 2021, the DOJ fined a Qatari diplomat $8.2 million for unreported lobbying on behalf of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).

Critics (e.g., reports from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy) allege Qatar funnels funds through US nonprofits or proxies to evade FARA, influencing discourse on issues like Hamas (Qatar hosts their leadership) without full disclosure.

A 2023 House hearing highlighted Qatar's $1.95 billion in undisclosed lobbying since 2017.

(FARA) filings under the U.S. Department of Justice, which require disclosure of foreign lobbying and influence activities, reveal Qatar’s broader targeting of conservative outlets post-2024 U.S. election.

They show a surge in communications to right-wing media from about 10% before the election to over 50% afterward, aimed at promoting favorable narratives on Qatar's role in regional stability and countering criticisms of its ties to groups like Hamas.

Tucker Carlson, Theo Von and Piers Morgan all showed pro-Qatar/anti-Israel messaging on social media following their respective visits to Qatar in 2025.