Abdullah bin Zayed Meets King of Spain

King Juan Carlos of Spain received this evening UAE Foreign Minister H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan who conveyed to him greetings of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his keenness to further ties between the two countries.

King Juan Carlos welcomed Sheikh Abdullah and asked him to pass on his greetings to Sheikh Khalifa. The meeting, attended by Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs '&' Cooperation Jose Manuel Margallo and UAE Ambassador to Madrid Dr Hasa Abdullah Al Otaibah, touched on bilateral relations and ways to enhance them in all fields. Earlier today, Sheikh Abdullah opened the new UAE embassy building in Madrid in presence of Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In a speech he gave after the opening, Sheikh Abdullah expressed pleasure at opening the new embassy in Madrid, "the capital city that symbolises the fusion of the two cultures and our deep-rooted ties." "The UAE is moving ahead with the march of development, started by its founder the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and with the numerous achievements, including cementing ties of friendship and cooperation with all nations of the world." Sheikh Abdullah said relations between the two countries had witnessed a huge progress, thanks to the keen efforts of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and King Juan Carlos. "The progress in relations has culminated in a number of bilateral agreements and in UAE's support to the initiatives made by successive governments in Spain to lay solid foundation for world peace. The most prominent initiative was the Alliance of Civilisations forum, co-sponsored by Spain and Turkey," he added.

Sheikh Abdullah also underlined cooperation between the two countries in military, economic, commercial and advanced technology fields, including Gemasolar Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) project. In the cultural exchange front, the UAE held cultural weeks in Granada and Madrid. A twinning agreement was signed between Ajman and Almeria and a similar agreement was also signed between Al Ain Sport Club and Atletico Madrid.

Sheikh Abdullah concluded by saying: "We are celebrating today the opening of the new UAE embassy in Madrid which reflects our desire to continue the development of political, economic and cultural ties between our countries. Spain enjoys an excellent position as a key European Union and international community member." Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs '&' Cooperation Jose Manuel Margallo said he was honoured to be part of the opening of the UAE embassy in Madrid. The opening ceremony was attended by Dr Hasa Al Otaibah, senior Spanish officials and members of the diplomatic corps in Madrid