Al Dhaheri explained that, in recent years, the political and strategic mutual trust between China and the United Arab Emirates has continuously improved, noting that the UAE was among the first to join the Belt and Road Initiative and now serves as “the principal logistics hub for the Belt and Road Initiative in the Middle East and North Africa region”.

He noted that the UAE accounts for over 60 percent of China’s exports to the region, with China being the UAE’s largest trading partner, and the UAE being home to more than 6,000 Chinese companies.

“Many Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) have been signed, which initiated new partnerships in various areas. I believe the upcoming inaugural summit will deepen the high-quality cooperation between the UAE and China, and will also expand and diversify the partnership between China and Arab states.”

Asked about the role of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which was recently held, in developing China-Arab relations, Al Dhaheri said, “The 20th CPC National Congress demonstrated China’s roadmap of development for the years to come,” adding that this will help the world in dealing with arising challenges, given the status of today’s China as the growth engine of the global economy.

China’s rise as an economic power has been impressive, causing many positive reverberations throughout the world, the UAE Ambassador went on to say, citing the East Asian country’s particular impact on the Middle East, with its burgeoning trade and investment activity in the region.

He said that the UAE will “actively work with China to strengthen multilateralism and pursue a more peaceful and prosperous world for mankind.”

On the role of the Chinese and Arab civilisations in enhancing mutual learning and cultural exchanges, and strengthen people-to-people ties, he said, “The Arab world and China are both well-known for their rich culture and long-standing histories. It is, therefore, no surprise that our two civilisations have had deep historical connections since ancient times.

As the representatives of two civilisations, the UAE and China have enjoyed nearly four decades of friendship, cooperation, and the UAE-China relationship has become a successful model for international bilateral relations. As the two countries proceed with their cooperation in various fields, such as economics, trade, science, technology, energy, agriculture and space, we believe that people from both sides will deepen their understanding and appreciation of each other’s unique heritage, culture and history."