ASIATODAY.ID, ABU DHABI – The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is committed to continuing to strengthen the cooperation that has existed for 40 years with China.
President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan conveyed this when meeting with Chinese Prime Minister, Li Qiang, in Abu Dhabi, on Thursday.
The UAE leader said he discussed “joint efforts to further enhance” the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.
As the two countries commemorated 40 years of diplomatic relations, Sheikh Mohammed called for achieving “sustainable growth, development and prosperity for our people.”
Li is on a two-day official visit to the UAE. In his comments, Li told the UAE president that China was “willing to further expand” the scale of bilateral trade with the Gulf country.
The UAE is China’s biggest export market in the Gulf, with bilateral trade volume reaching about US$95 billion last year.
Li also called for exploring cooperation with the UAE in new energy, electric vehicles, high-end manufacturing, biomedicine, digital economy and other fields, as well as “jointly making advanced plans for new and future industries, and cultivating more new economic growth points .”
The Chinese Prime Minister flew to Abu Dhabi from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at the invitation of the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
On Thursday morning, Li was received by bin Rashid and the two sides held high-level talks.
The UAE vice president expressed his hope that Li’s visit “will further strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries.”
Under Beijing’s trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, China and the UAE have implemented several projects such as upgrading China-UAE industrial capabilities, while projects such as the second phase of the container terminal at Khalifa Port, and the Dubai Photovoltaic Thermal Power Plant are in progress. .
China and the UAE are also collaborating in building the world’s first artificial intelligence university in Abu Dhabi.
Li will finish his two-nation tour of the Gulf on Friday. He began his trip on Tuesday from Riyadh, where he said Saudi Arabia was a “priority” for China’s diplomacy in the Middle East. (AT Network)
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