Cop26: Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed meets US secretary of state

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation is leading the UAE delegation

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation at the Cop26 UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland. AFP

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, met US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, on the sidelines of the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow.

During the meeting, Sheikh Abdullah and Mr Blinken discussed the longstanding historic relations between the UAE and the US, as well as regional and global issues of mutual concern.

Sheikh Abdullah, who is leading the UAE delegation at Cop26, emphasised the strong and strategic UAE-US relations and the continuous co-operation development in all fields between the two sides.

Also at the meeting were Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and the UAE's special envoy for climate change, and Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment.

Dr Al Jaber also met US climate envoy John Kerry on Wednesday, when they took part in a session organised by the American think tank, the Atlantic Council, alongside the Kenyan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rachel Imamu, and Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft.

Writing on Twitter, Dr Al Jaber said they discussed "the importance of investing in climate initiatives that are inclusive and financially sustainable, and [how to] reduce emissions without affecting economic growth".

Earlier this year, the UAE launched a bid to bring the Cop28 climate summit to Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Abdullah said if the UAE were confirmed as hosts, the goal would be to make Cop28 “as inclusive and action-oriented as possible, a Cop that brings together developed and developing countries and unites all sectors – public, private, academic and civil society – around a focus on tangible solutions".

Day four of Cop26 - in pictures