Professional and Diplomatic Beginnings

After completing his university studies in Egypt and returning to Doha, Dr. Hamad was appointed principal of Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Primary School. On February 22, 1972, when the late His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani - may God grant him peace - assumed the reins of power, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was established. His Excellency Dr. Hamad was one of the first to leave the teaching profession and move to the diplomatic corps, which constituted a turning point in his political, cultural and social life.

His Excellency Dr. Hamad Al-Kawari began his professional career in 1972, and the first task assigned to him was to go to Beirut as a charge d'affaires to prepare the embassy and residence for His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani, to be the first ambassador to Lebanon. After preparing for this mission, three young Qataris who joined the diplomatic corps were chosen with him.

He was happy to begin diplomacy in Beirut, which taught him the art of life with its various Arab movements and orientations, which strengthened in him respect for pluralism and respect for the other point of view.

After the October War of 1973, His Excellency Sheikh Suhaim bin Hamad Al Thani - may God have mercy on him - visited Beirut, and then an appointment was set for him to meet President Hafez Al-Assad. The Qatari embassy in Beirut was covering Damascus, so Sheikh Suhaim bin Hamad asked him to accompany him to Damascus. The situation was still tense, and he was assigned to write the minutes of the meeting by candlelight because the electricity was going out.

Sheikh Suhaim was very impressed with the report, and when Qatar decided to open an embassy in Damascus and another in Algeria, the Emiri Court decided to appoint him as ambassador to Algeria. When Sheikh Suhaim found out, he refused and insisted on being the ambassador in Damascus due to his knowledge of Syria, and accordingly he served as ambassador to Syria in 1974. Five years later, he was appointed Qatar's ambassador to France.

During this period, he served as non-resident ambassador to Greece, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. Then, from 1984 - 1990, he became the representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations. During the same period, he was a non-resident ambassador to Argentina, Brazil, and Canada. In 1990, the State of Qatar appointed him as Ambassador to the United States of America until 1992 and as a Non-Resident Ambassador to Mexico and Venezuela.