Qatar government officials have played down the visit by Foreign Minster Tzipi Livni, her first trip to an Arab country that does not recognize Israel. An aide to Qatar Foreign Minister Yousef bin Abdullah said the meeting was "not meant to have a result" but merely to allow Foreign Minister Livni and her counterpart to exchange views, according to the French news agency AFP.

The Qatar Foreign Minister ruled out the possibility of re-opening the Israeli office in the oil-rich state. It was closed after the beginning of the Oslo War in 2000.