Shortly after a visit to France and following a visit to Egypt that included participation in a five Arab State summit, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, paid an official visit to Greece, a key strategic partner of the UAE in Europe, during which President Katerina Sakellaropoulou sought to confirm the consensus of views between the two countries on peace, security and prosperity.
His Highness, in turn, expressed satisfaction over the rising development of Emirati-Greek relations over the past few years. He pointed out that trade exchange has gone up by 17% in the last two years, despite the circumstances of the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, forcing a decline in global trade.
The UAE’s friendly relations with Greece were transformed two years ago as a formula for a comprehensive strategic partnership concluded in November 2020 went ahead. Statistically, convergence and interaction under the comprehensive strategic partnership has boosted trade exchanges by 67% in 2021 compared to the previous year.
This is also reflected in the agreement to establish a joint investment fund of 4 billion euros to facilitate investment in the Greek economy in a wide range of sectors, including infrastructure, renewable and new energy, health and pharmaceuticals, food, agricultural projects, logistics and others.
Joint cooperation in a wide range of fields is one of the most notable features and policies of the UAE, which works to share benefits and interests with strategic partners from around the world. The UAE has highly ambitious goals for competitiveness and development. To achieve these goals, it needs to expand the range of partnerships and cooperation with different countries.
The UAE is committed to opening channels of continuous communication with all friendly partner countries from different continents to achieve its goals of strengthening international peace and security and providing solutions and alternatives that help defuse global crises, such as in energy and other fields. This is not only out of the sense of responsibility it has as a non-permanent member of the Security Council 2022-2023, but also in line with its policies and principles laid down by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan since its establishment.
For its part, Greece has a growing interest in strengthening cooperation with the UAE and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. It recently received the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, for an official visit. This confirms Athens’ role as an important player in Arab-European cooperation, as well as in the fields of energy, global security and stability.
Greece is seeking to establish itself as a central entry point for natural gas imports to EU countries from the Middle East and the southeastern Mediterranean.
Gas discoveries are on the rise, as countries such as Israel, Egypt, and others emerge as important sources of gas that Europe desperately needs to offset Russian energy imports it is trying to do without following the outbreak of the crisis in Ukraine. UAE investments can play a key role in supporting the Greek economy, especially in gas exploration.
The friendly relations and strategic partnership between the UAE and Greece have development ingredients derived from the diversity of their economic, trade, political, military, investment, energy and cultural element.
In addition, communication and rapprochement between the leaders of the two countries is growing, reflected in regular reciprocal visits, in line with the ambition of both countries to expand this partnership. Enough to mention the meeting between HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece, during his last visit.
This was their fourth meeting since July 2019. Previously, Mitsotakis paid two visits to the UAE in February and November 2020, during which he met with HH the President of the State. There are other signs of partnership and good understanding, reflected in close cooperation on high-profile issues such as the Libyan crisis.
They also exchange advanced military equipment, such as upgraded versions of US F-16 fighter jets. The UAE and Greece have various models of French Mirage fighter jets, enabling them to exchange military and training experience in joint exercises to improve the efficiency, combat capabilities and operational readiness of the two friendly countries’ armed forces.
Under the leadership of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s foreign policy is experiencing active momentum and influential impetus. The UAE’s regional and international engagement is expanding to more areas, countries and organizations, reflecting the ambitious development goals that its wise leadership has set for the future.
