Qatar's foreign minister called criticism of the West “arrogant” and “racist.” In an exclusive interview with German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said that European and Western countries think that Qatar is “not intellectually or culturally prepared to host a World Cup.”

“It is ironic when this tone is struck in countries in Europe that call themselves liberal democracies. It honestly sounds very arrogant and very racist,” he said.

The foreign minister considers this policy as a "double standards." He noted that the German population is “misinformed by government politicians.” He added that the German government seems to have “no problem” when it comes to energy cooperation with Qatar.

Qatar has been criticized since it won the bid to host the World Cup in 2010.  The West has criticized Qatar for its human rights situation and treatment of migrant workers.