DUBAI (Reuters) -Qatar’s offer to gift U.S. President Trump a Boeing 747-8 airplane is a “normal thing that happens between allies”, Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Tuesday at an economic forum held in Doha.
Al Thani dismissed concerns about Qatar trying to buy influence with its key ally, after U.S. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer introduced a bill on Monday that would prevent any foreign aircraft operating as Air Force One, the plane that transports the U.S. president.
“I hope that the United States looks to Qatar as a reliable partner in diplomacy that is not trying to buy influence,” Al Thani said.
Trump shrugged off ethical concerns, saying it would be “stupid” to turn down the generous offer.
He said the Boeing 747-8 would eventually be donated to his presidential library – a repository housing research materials from his administration, and that he had no plans to use it for personal reasons after leaving office.
(Reporting by Andrew Mills, Writing by Nayera Abdallah, Editing by Louise Heavens, Kirsten Donovan)
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