UAE and Russia highlight strength of relations and efforts to combat COVID-19

His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, has stressed that the UAE and the Russian Federation share comprehensive strategic ties and are cooperating to create a safe, prosperous and modern region.

Sheikh Abdullah made this statement during a joint news conference in Moscow with the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov.

His Highness said, "In the UAE, we are proud to have comprehensive strategic relations with the Russian Federation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we realised that our relations with Russia will witness significant development in the coming years."

He then expressed his pride in the work of the relevant teams as well as the embassies in Moscow and Abu Dhabi during the COVID-19 crisis, including in the Phase III clinical trials of the Russian vaccine.

"Next year, we shall host the Expo 2020 Dubai, which was postponed from 2020 to 2021, and I am confident that the presence of Russia will be an outstanding one. We are looking forward to the Expo, as the first key global gathering after recovering from COVID-19," Sheikh Abdullah said.

"We believe that it will be an opportunity for the international community to highlight its outstanding level of cooperation, solidarity and hard work in delivering many doses of vaccines in a short time, and we are looking forward to a more efficient world, which will be better prepared to address such challenges," he said.

In his response to several questions raised by representatives of Russian media outlets on maintaining security in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, Libya and the Palestinian cause, Sheikh Abdullah stated, "We welcome Russia’s efforts to ease tensions in the region, and our objective is its modernisation. We can work together to create modern, developed, advanced and prosperous countries."

"There are many opportunities to achieve development and improve conditions in a region that has witnessed numerous challenges....However, we also need to address the concepts of hate, incitement and extremism in the region and the rest of the world. These are critical problems that need to be solved," he added.

He also talked about the Libyan issue, affirming, "Libya is facing a significant challenge after the fall of its regime, two elections, and the domination of the political system by terrorist groups."

He noted that Libya is a key Arab country, which the UAE, along with Russia, is willing to cooperate with, adding, "We have participated, along with Russia, in the Berlin Conference on Libya, and we supported a political settlement. We will work with our Berlin Conference counterparts, our friends from around the world and the Arab League to ensure the stability of Libya."

On the Palestinian cause, he said, "Coordinating with the Russian Federation and your friends from Arab countries on the Palestinian cause is a matter of utter importance and we hope to cooperate to revive the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians."

"I would like to highlight Russia’s positive stance and its forward-looking perception of the solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. I hope that we can work together with Russia, the Quartet on the Middle East and the Arab League to highlight the fact that there is hope for achieving peace in the region," he added.

In his speech, Lavrov highlighted the advancing economic ties between the two countries, noting that their trade increased by 60 percent in nine months, a joint committee between the two countries is working successfully, and their overall bilateral relations are continuously developing.

"During our talks, we addressed the current situation in the Middle East and North Africa and our points of view are mainly convergent. We also discussed the situation in Syria, Libya and Yemen, the latest developments in Israel and Palestine, and the security agenda in the Gulf region," Lavrov added.