Video: German President made to wait for 30 minutes on aircraft after reaching Qatar

The incident happened in the presence of Germany’s ambassador to Qatar, Lothar Freischlader.

German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier was made to wait for half an hour at the gate of his aircraft after reaching Doha. He was in Qatar for an official meeting with its ruler, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

A video of Germany's President standing at the exit of his aircraft, went viral on social media. (X(formerly Twitter))

A video of Steinmeier standing at the exit of his aircraft, went viral on social media. On the tarmac, a military honor guard could be seen. Interestingly, the incident happened in the presence of Germany’s ambassador to Qatar, Lothar Freischlader.

According to reports, the gaffe occurred as no Qatari official was present to formally welcome the German President. After almost 30 minutes, Sultan al-Muraichai, Qatar’s minister of state for foreign affairs, arrived to receive Steinmeier.

Meanwhile, German officials wondered if it was a deliberate act from the Qatari side. Earlier, in October German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had taken a veiled dig at Qatar over its support to Hamas. Baerbock's comments had reportedly caused anger in Qatar.

Why did the German President visit Qatar?

Steinmeier was on an official three-hour visit to Doha, to have a meeting with Qatar’s ruler, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The meeting involved discussions over securing the release of German hostages held under Hamas captivity in Gaza.

"I am sure Qatar will do everything in its power to contribute to the release of the German hostages," the German President told reporters in Doha after the meeting with Al Thani.

Notably, Qatar is a key mediator of the hostage exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, under which 80 Israeli hostages were released in lieu of the freeing of 240 Palestinian prisoners lodged in Israeli jails. Qatar is also home to Hamas' political wing.

German President's visit to Israel

Before visiting Qatar, Steinmeier went to Israel and Oman. During his Israel visit, the German President reiterated the country's support for Israel in its fight against terror.

Notably, Israel suffered a brutal terror attack by Hamas on October 7. Hamas terrorists killed hundreds of innocent civilians, raped women and abducted hostages.