During a summit via video conference, Erdogan witnessed the signing ceremony

Head of State: Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with Turkey is exceptional with a dear and friendly country

• During the signing ceremony of the agreement. WAM

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President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the signing ceremony of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and Turkey during a virtual summit.

The agreement was signed by the UAE Minister of Economy, Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, and the Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, and the Minister of Trade, Mehmet Muş, representing the Republic of Turkey, to usher in a new era of bilateral cooperation that contributes to stimulating trade exchange, increasing investment flows and creating joint opportunities in priority sectors.

Exceptional Agreement

At the beginning of the video call, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan welcomed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, expressing his happiness at the renewed meeting with him and thanking him for providing the opportunity through the agreement to take another step towards strengthening and deepening relations between the two friendly countries.

His Highness also welcomed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, saying: "We congratulate ourselves on the signing of the agreement, which we consider an exceptional agreement with a dear and friendly country."

confidence

His Highness expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Turkish President for his keenness to sponsor the signing of this important partnership, despite his great concerns in light of the earthquake conditions in Turkey.

On this occasion, His Highness said: "I pray to God Almighty to protect Turkey and its friendly people from all evil, and to give you help and strength to overcome this stage. We are confident in the ability of the Turkish people to overcome these circumstances and move towards construction and development." His Highness reiterated the UAE's support for Turkey as a helper and assistant, saying: "This is our approach inherited from our founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, in building bridges of cooperation and solidarity with brotherly and friendly peoples."

Big Twist

His Highness pointed out that the signing of the partnership is an embodiment of the great and qualitative development witnessed by our relations during the last period, as the total non-oil trade between the UAE and Turkey reached nearly $ 19 billion in 2022, an increase of 40% over 2021, and 112% over 2020, making Turkey the fastest growing partner among the top 10 trade partners of the UAE.

His Highness stressed that «the agreement expresses the common will to launch a new phase of relations between our two countries in various fields, and God willing, will contribute to strengthening the bonds of economic cooperation, and pushing the development process in the two countries towards a bright future».

Development Partnership

The agreement not only aims to stimulate trade and investment exchange and joint economic growth, thus enhancing the quality of life of the two friendly peoples, but also establishes a real development partnership, building common interests and consolidating stronger and stronger strategic relations between the two countries, he said. His Highness stressed the UAE's keenness to strengthen development partnerships in the region, in order to support peace and cooperation and achieve the aspirations of peoples towards development, stability and prosperity.

A qualitative step

His Highness said in a tweet on Twitter: "I witnessed with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a video call the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and Turkey. A qualitative step in the march of relations between the two countries. Through it, we seek to strengthen economic and trade cooperation for the benefit and prosperity of all."

At the end of the virtual meeting, His Highness thanked the officials from the two countries who completed this agreement in less than a year, which we look forward to achieving prosperity and joint growth for the two countries.

New Chapter

For his part, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed his greetings to His Highness the President of the UAE, and his pleasure to attend the signing ceremony of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and the Republic of Turkey.

"Today together we are writing a new chapter in our relations," he said, noting that "the joint efforts of the two sides to strengthen their bilateral economic relations, which are based on our common history, culture and values, also contribute significantly to the prosperity, well-being and stability of our region and the world."

Erdogan added that the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement signed by the two countries and the important advantages it included, such as the liberalization of bilateral goods, services and trade with a focus on small and medium enterprises, facilitating the work of investors and setting rules for the protection of intellectual property rights according to the highest standards, will be an incentive to promote trade and investments.

"We will reap the fruits of this agreement in our two countries and our region within a short period of time, which will stimulate further cooperation between the business communities of both countries."

Important anchor

The Turkish president said that "the vision of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, known for his love for Turkey, was an important pillar of what the relations of the two countries have achieved and the level they have reached."

He pointed to the earthquakes in large areas of Turkey and the great destruction they caused and their repercussions on about 14 million Turks living in these areas, looking forward to the reconstruction of these areas within a year and the construction of high-quality and safe buildings to meet the housing challenges in the entire earthquake areas.

Erdogan praised the support provided by the UAE to Turkey since the first day of the earthquake, praising the efforts made by the UAE search and rescue teams in the earthquake areas, as well as the great support provided by the field hospitals set up by the UAE and their services in these areas.

Mohammed bin Zayed:

• "The agreement expresses the common will to launch a new phase of relations between our two countries in various fields."

• "The agreement also establishes a real development partnership, building common interests, and consolidating stronger and stronger strategic relations between the two countries."

Recep Tayyip Erdogan:

• "We will reap the fruits of this partnership in a short period of time, which will stimulate further cooperation between the two business communities."

• "The vision of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, known for his love for Turkey, was an important foundation for what the relations of the two countries have achieved."

Positive developments

The UAE-Turkey relations have witnessed tangible positive developments during the past two years, supported by mutual official visits between the leaderships of the two countries, as His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, visited Turkey on November 24, 2021 at the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who visited the UAE on February 14, 2022. During the first visit, the UAE announced the establishment of a $10 billion investment fund in Turkey, focusing on the logistics, energy, health and food sectors. During the second visit, 13 cooperation agreements were signed in many areas of common interest.

The Turkish president also participated in the tenth session of the World Government Summit 2023 in Dubai, where he delivered a recorded speech during a keynote session on the second day, in which he stressed the depth of relations between the UAE and Turkey.