His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, affirmed that the United Arab Emirates and the Republic of South Korea demonstrated during the extraordinary situation that the world faced this year due to the unprecedented effects of the emerging corona virus (COFED-19) and the global health crisis that accompanied it ; A true translation of the meanings of friendship and solidarity, which proved that the two countries have common interests, goals and values that can be achieved in the framework of close cooperation.
His Highness said - in an article quoted by the South Korean Yonhap News Agency under the title "a model for bilateral partnership that has become stronger after the outbreak of (Covid-19)", on the occasion of His Highness's visit to South Korea scheduled today, coinciding with the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between The two countries - the UAE expresses its appreciation to the people of the South Korean state, as the two countries have distinguished bilateral relations. South Korea was one of the first countries to encounter the "Covid-19" virus at the beginning of the pandemic outbreak during the past months, and South Korea has gained a great experience shared with us and with The international community, where South Korean experiences formed an important part in the field of best practices that attached great importance to efforts to combat the pandemic and stop the spread of the virus, as South Korea moved early and responsible to reduce the spread of "Covid-19", and provided a role model at the level International.
His Highness expressed the UAE’s pride that it benefited from South Korea’s experience in implementing national measures aimed at limiting the spread of the virus while continuing its basic international logistics services, while the UAE provided assistance in evacuating Korean citizens and their families from Tehran during the height of the virus’s outbreak in the region, and the country has kept On trade links with Seoul before having to temporarily close the border. His Highness also expressed the UAE’s appreciation to South Korea for giving it priority in exporting “Covid-19 virus testing equipment and medical supplies” to the country, as both the UAE and South Korea sought to send the necessary assistance to many other countries, within the framework of the commitment of the two countries Principles of humanitarian action.
In his article, His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan said: The two countries are located in strategic and vital areas, and both support the achievement of stability and prosperity in the surrounding countries, and therefore the two countries seek to limit extremism and expansionist activities - wherever they come from - by promoting joint collective action in our regions. Within the framework of international law, we believe that cooperation and solidarity are essential factors for our two countries due to the challenges that we faced together and individually. His Highness added: We have adopted the model of bilateral relations between our two countries as an example to follow for our relations with other countries. The UAE and South Korea have broken down travel barriers and signed a mutual investment agreement, and the two sides pledged to enhance cultural cooperation as well as other forms of exchange, as there were 14 weekly flights between South Korea And the Emirates before the current global health crisis, and we hope that this number will grow in the future after the decline of the "Covid-19 virus" crisis and the easing of the accompanying restrictions, and we are proud to launch the UAE-Korean cultural dialogue 2020 in January on the occasion of celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries And celebrate Emirati and Korean culture in the two countries.
Significant growth in bilateral relations
His Highness stressed that the bilateral relations between the UAE and South Korea have witnessed remarkable growth since the establishment of official diplomatic relations between them in 1980, and His Highness said: Over the years, the UAE aspired to cooperate with South Korea due to its great experience in the fields of manufacturing and technology, and South Korea looked forward to cooperation with the UAE due to its experience The major in the field of logistics, trade and tourism in the Middle East, indicating his highness that the bilateral relations between the two countries reached an important stage when the UAE signed contracts with the Korean Electric Power Company and "Hyundai" and "Samsung C&T" to help build the first nuclear power plant In the Arab world, where the Barakah nuclear power plant will meet 25% of the UAE's domestic energy needs when it begins operating at full capacity, which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 21 million tons annually.
Strong partnership in the energy sector
His Highness affirmed that the two countries enjoy a strong partnership in the traditional energy sector by signing important agreements in the fields of oil and gas fields, noting that the two countries supported their distinguished relations in 2018 after they signed a distinguished strategic partnership that will enhance the opportunities that establish markets and channels New economy outside South Korea and the UAE.
His Highness said: Today, the commercial partnership between the UAE and South Korea includes a large number of sectors and activities, including commodity trade, technology development, research and development in the field of energy, financial services, logistics, health, food security, agriculture, and other sectors.
5 billion dollars the volume of bilateral non-oil trade between the two countries
His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, pointed out that the volume of bilateral non-oil trade between the UAE and South Korea has reached approximately $ 5 billion, and there are more than 50 Korean companies based in the UAE, which includes more than ten Thousands of South Korean citizens.
His Highness said: Despite all these distinguished statistics for the two countries, the two sides see this as just the beginning of a deeper and broader relationship, through which we provide joint solutions to a greater number of markets, and therefore it will be appropriate for South Korea to have a distinguished participation in Expo 2020 Dubai which will be held in the year of 2021, given the unprecedented conditions that the world faced due to the outbreak of the emerging Corona Virus pandemic, and we welcome the commitment of the South Korean state to participate strongly in this historic event that coincides with the fiftieth anniversary of the Union.
His Highness concluded his article by saying: I would like to express my personal appreciation to my counterpart His Excellency Kang Kyung-wa, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of South Korea, for granting me the honor to be the first foreign minister to visit your country since the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic, my visit today is a testament to the appreciation and mutual respect between The leadership of the United Arab Emirates and South Korea to each other, and our optimistic vision of the post-Coved-19 world, as well as a bright future, we will cooperate in shaping together.