Post-oil future means close ties with China: Mohammed bin Zayed

Foreign minister says China will be crucial in bringing stability and development in region and beyond

14 December 2015

Three critical pillars - economics, politics, and culture - will help UAE improve ties with China and build its post-oil future, according to Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The Foreign Minister has said that the UAE, as a vital political, economic, and cultural hub between East and West, and the gateway to the Middle East, considers its relations with the People's Republic of China to be crucial in bringing stability and development in the region and beyond.

Shaikh Abdullah added that the UAE considers working in partnership with China to foster regional trade, further develop renewable energy technologies in a post-oil future, engage closely in space cooperation, and develop new forms of communication and information sharing.

His remarks, issued on the occasion of the official visit by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to China will be published in Beijing by China Daily, People's Daily and the Xinhua News Agency.

He said: "Since its foundation, the UAE has endeavoured to build a society that is inclusive, open, and moderate. The UAE has pursued a vision which respects diversity, empowers women, encourages technological advancement, and seeks to lead our nation to the cutting edge of human progress. Whilst this vision has informed our national development approach, it is also one that goes far beyond the UAE's borders.

"It is a vision that is global in scope, underpinned by free trade, innovation, political moderation, and tolerance. It is one which actively seeks to find solutions that bring peoples, and cultures closer together, and one where all societies can obtain viable political and economic futures."

However, he added, this is a vision, which cannot be carried out alone.

"It is one that, if it is to truly succeed, will require partners both great and small, Eastern and Western, to cooperate closely and engage continuously in the spirit of openness, respect, and equality."

The minister added that the UAE and China keep a range of shared goals. "Just as our forebears cooperated in challenging environments along the ancient caravan routes of the Silk Roads and the stormy seas of the Indian Ocean, so too will we use the opportunity of the present to display leadership and forge new pathways of prosperity and stability.

"Over the next decade, we believe that the UAE-China relationship will reach a dynamic new epoch. The UAE and China, as partners, will leverage our own societies' diversity to encourage tolerance and stability, and use our unique geographical locations and development models to ensure truly inclusive economic growth throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

"It is in this context of shared success and common goals that the visit to China by Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is taking place. The UAE wishes to use the opportunity of this visit to push the very boundaries of possibility in our relationship with China.

"We want to ensure that our bilateral ties continue to move in a strategic direction and are underpinned by the three critical pillars of economics, politics, and culture.

"We are at an undeniably important crossroads in our bilateral relations." -Wam