Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, begins an official visit to China today. Over the next three days, Sheikh Mohammed will meet China’s senior leadership including president Xi Jinping to discuss expanding trade along with developing social and cultural exchanges. Development-focused projects and regional stability will feature heavily on the agenda.
Our links with the Chinese are not new. China’s relationship with the region extends deep into history. Chinese goods have been traded in the Arabian peninsula by sea for nearly 2,000 years. Building on these historic ties, the UAE is currently China’s largest trade partner in the Middle East. Since 1984, when diplomatic relations were established, trade volume has grown steadily. Last year, bilateral trade was $54.8 billion (Dh201 billion), and economic activity is growing at an impressive 14 per cent annually.
As part of its “One Belt, One Road” strategy aimed at re-energising trade links along the old Silk Road, Beijing has identified the UAE as one of its key partners. The strategy is part of the Asian powerhouse’s primary foreign growth policy and it looks far beyond hydrocarbons. With almost 4,200 Chinese companies registered here and more than 200,000 Chinese citizens living throughout the country, the foundation for our expanding relationship is well established. Going forward, China is attracted by the our renewable energy ambitions and the past year has seen rising investment in a range of projects in the region.
With East Asia primed to rise economically, it makes sense for us to build on our historical links with the Asia-Pacific region and firm up existing partnerships with powerhouses like China. From bolstering our tourism industry to efforts to achieve regional stability, China has a critical role to play as a partner and the UAE is ideal as Beijing’s gateway to the region.
Linked by 36 existing agreements, the expansion of UAE-China relations will be a natural step forward. From plans to create a joint sovereign fund to partnering in renewable energy projects that will shape the future of the world, the prospect for a deepening partnership has an enormous potential for both economies.
