Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, Chairman of the Al Habtoor Group, paid a courtesy call on former US President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalyn Carter at their home in Plains, Georgia in mid-October.
Al Habtoor, who was in the US for his keynote speech in Washington DC at the 24th Annual Arab-US Policymakers Conference, spent a couple of hours with the Carter’s to discuss Middle East issues, including the situation in Palestine. President and Mrs Carter have met Al Habtoor several times in Dubai, and last year President Carter joined Al Habtoor at Illinois College to launch his ‘Pathways to Peace’ initiative aimed at finding a realistic solution to the Middle East peace process.
President Carter briefed Al Habtoor on The Carter Center’s activities in the Middle East, and updated him on how Al Habtoor’s donations are being utilised on the ground in Palestine. They also discussed the escalating situation in Syria, and their shared concerns over rising tension, and increased terrorism in parts of the Middle East.
The Al Habtoor Group Chairman passed on his well-wishes to the 91-year-old former president, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. Al Habtoor said, “President Carter was in good spirits. I have the utmost respect for unwavering commitment to world peace. Despite his personal health issues he remains committed to global issues via The Carter Center.”
They also discussed the Carter’s role in the peanut industry, and the outpouring of support President Carter received from the general public at the 19th Annual Plains Peanut Festival last month.
President Carter gave Al Habtoor a signed copy of his memoirs, ‘A Full Life, Reflections at Ninety’.