UAE, Türkiye to work closely on promoting economic development: UAE official

ANKARA

The Speaker of the Federal National Council of the United Arab Emirates on Monday affirmed the distinguished relations that his country and Türkiye share.

Saqr Ghobash participated in the swearing-in ceremony of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday.

He conveyed “the greetings of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, to His Excellency President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for his re-election as President of the Republic of Türkiye.”

“The Emirati participation in the inauguration ceremony reflects the special position that Türkiye holds for the leadership and people of the UAE,” Ghobash told Anadolu.

He also confirmed “the UAE’s sincere desire to strengthen relations with Türkiye.”

Strong ties

“The visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Türkiye in November 2021 and the visit of His Excellency President Erdogan to the UAE in February 2022 constituted an important leap in the development of relations between our two countries,” Ghobash told Anadolu.

“The UAE and Türkiye are active and influential members of the regional and international work systems,” he added.

He said “the distinguished relationship between the two countries has an important role in laying the foundations for promoting peace and regional economic development.”

Ghobash stressed that “the current international and regional situation requires more dialogue, cooperation and understanding to enhance trust and multiple viewpoints on issues of common concern."

“Our two countries have a great opportunity to deepen cooperation in the fields of technology, renewable energy and the cultural and tourism fields,” he added.

He also pointed out that “the active Turkish participation in Expo 2020 Dubai reflected the importance of building bridges of cooperation between our two countries.”

Developing relations

“The sincere will of the leadership of our two countries, especially with the re-election of President Erdogan, constitutes the main pillar for the development of strategic relations between the UAE and Türkiye,” said Ghobash.

He noted that “the UAE is Türkiye’s first trading partner at the Gulf level and the 12th at the global level.”

“There are more than 400 companies with Emirati capital operating in Türkiye and more than 200 Turkish companies operating in the UAE,” he added.

Ghobash considered that "the past months were pivotal, especially in the field of economic and trade cooperation.”

“Many investments took place in key areas such as transportation, healthcare and energy,” he said. “This reflects the desire of the two countries to increase positive participation to enhance economic and trade opportunities."

He said "the two countries have the opportunity to help many countries in digital transformation thanks to their advanced technological infrastructure.”

Parliamentary cooperation

“Parliamentary relations play a pivotal role in strengthening ties between countries,” Ghobash said.

“This certainly applies to the parliamentary relations between the Federal National Council and the Turkish Grand National Assembly,” he added.

Ghobash affirmed that “Türkiye and the UAE can develop relations at the parliamentary level by increasing the scope of parliamentary visits at the level of the presidency and friendship committees.”

"Our two councils can also agree to establish joint action mechanisms through which they can exchange experiences in the field of oversight and legislative work,” he added.

Regional stability

“The strong and distinguished UAE-Turkish relations represent a cornerstone of regional and international peace and security,” the Emirati official told Anadolu.

He also stressed that "strong bilateral relations contribute to building a unified position to confront a regional or international crisis.”

“The region cannot bear more polarization,” he noted. “The coming decades need more communication, integration and cooperation in the political, economic, technological, health and food fields.”

He affirmed that “the UAE seeks through its diplomacy to build a state of interdependence based on common interests among the countries of the region.”

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi.