UAE Boosting Trade and Investment Partnership with Greece

Visiting UAE Foreign Minister H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and his host Vice President of Greece Theodore Pangalos opened here the UAE-Greece Economic Forum. In his welcome address, Sheikh Abdullah said prospects for further expansion in bilateral relations were possible under the political will of the two governments.

''The Forum aims to boost and facilitate channels of communication between public and private sectors in the two friendly countries for expanding avenues of joint economic and investment cooperation,'' Sheikh Abdullah added. ''Our interest in this friendly country (Greece) springs out of the fact that despite the difficult economic circumstances the world economy, including the Greek financial crisis, is passing through, we believe that there is a hope for recovery, which requires collective cooperation from all of us in order to maintain our achievements in the world economy hierarchy.

The UAE foreign minister told the gathering that he was confident that Greece, driven by its rich historic and civilisational legacy, will weather the storm. According to him, the UAE is interested in enhancing its trade and investment relations with Greece. Sheikh Abdullah said that stimulating greater trade and economic exchange between the two friendly countries calls on economists, businessmen and investors to translate investment opportunities into real, viable ventures that satisfy market demands and spur economic growth.

''The financial crunch has affected economies of countries and the best mechanism to address it is to further boost joint cooperation, explore investment opportunities and new markets as well as to achieve integration for building capacities in pursuit of economic growth and addressing potential future challenges,'' he added.

Sheikh Abdullah hoped long EU-GCC negotiations would culminate into creation of a free trade zone which, he affirmed, would have far-reaching positive impact on joint trade and investment relations. On his turn, the Greek Vice President of Greece Theodore Pangalos said Athens lends special attention to its relations with the UAE.

The UAE, he added, offers attractive investment climate which lured international businesses, making it a prominent world-class trade and financial hub and magnet destination for international companies, providing a gateway to the lucrative regional markets.