UAE, ROK - two strategic partners on right track

This is a contribution article written by UAE Ambassador to South Korea Abdulla Saif Al Nuaimi Ambassador, on the occasion of President Moon Jae-in's visit to the Middle East country. ―ED.

Amb. Abdulla Saif Al Nuaimi

It goes without saying that the United Arab Emirates and the Republic of Korea have maintained distinguished bilateral ties since the establishment of these relations in the early 1980s.

The Republic Of Korea opened its embassy in Abu Dhabi in 1980, while the UAE opened its embassy in the Korean capital Seoul in 1987. In 2009, the two countries upgraded their bilateral ties into strategic partnership.

Despite being located on opposite sides of the Asian continent, each of the two nations has contributed significantly to the remarkable economic growth in the other country. The ties between the UAE and the ROK found their roots in the principles of cooperation and mutual respect, and evolved into a strategic partnership and peoples over recent years.

It is with great pride that I consider the strategic partnership between our countries, for the UAE is the first and only country in the Middle East region to maintain a strategic partnership with the ROK.

On this auspicious and historic visit of President Moon Jae-in to the United Arab Emirates, marking his first visit to a Middle-Eastern nation since assuming the presidency, I would like to hail the tremendous progress our two countries achieved on all levels.

The trade volume between the two countries reached around $15 billion in 2017 and around 200 Korean companies are currently operating in the UAE.

The volume of people-to-people exchanges between the two sides has increased significantly through visits by citizens of both countries, whether for business, leisure tourism or medical tourism, thanks to the daily direct flights between the two countries.

In the future, we expect an increase in people-to-people, cultural and educational exchanges, a development expected to create more convergence and mutual understanding between the two friendly peoples.

I would like to emphasize that my country is always welcoming and encouraging Korean companies to invest in the UAE, notably ones which have harnessed a great reputation around the world.

For Korean businessmen, I believe that Korean companies would receive special attention in the UAE due to the increased pace of cooperation and joint projects developed and built between the two countries. One of these remarkable projects is the Barakah nuclear power plant presently under construction in the UAE by the Korean consortium.

On the occasion of this visit, I would like to express my deepest appreciation to the Korean government and people for all their efforts to establish and maintain great relations with my country.

Mutual visits of the leaders of the two countries bear witness to the strong bilateral ties our countries share in various fields together with the ever-growing volume of commercial, economic and cultural exchanges.

Over the past few years, the two sides exchanged a number of visits at leadership level. These include visits made to the Republic of Korea by HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai in 2007 as well as three visits made by HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

From the Korean side, three former presidents made visits to the UAE over the same period. These include the visit of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun in 2006, two visits by former President Lee Myung-bak in 2009 and 2011 and two visits by former President Park Geun-hye in 2014 and 2015.

Previous visits played a key role in cementing the bilateral ties between the two friendly nations. During those visits, agreements were reached in various fields of cooperation.

I am quite sure that President Moon's visit will positively contribute to the promotion and enhancement of bilateral trade and joint investments in particular, and bolster the strategic partnership between the two friendly countries.