UAE AND CHINA SIGN DEALS WORTH BILLIONS DURING VISIT
▶ President Xi welcomes Sheikh Mohamed at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed continued his three-day official visit to China yesterday, overseeing deals worth billions signed between the countries in energy, technology, defence, environment and education.
The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces was welcomed to Beijing’s Great Hall of the People with an official reception ceremony.
Sheikh Mohamed and his accompanying high-level delegation were received by Chinese President Xi Jinping, with whom they had a meeting after a 21-gun salute.
“Today, I am pleased to meet with my dear friend Xi Jinping, President of China,” Sheikh Mohamed yesterday tweeted.
“We share common aspirations, ambition, a vision of investment in human capital and envisage a future of safety, peace and stability worldwide. The UAE and China are moving towards a promising future,” he said.
During the meeting with Mr Xi and other Chinese officials, Sheikh Mohamed said ties with China had been strong since they were established in November 1984. He also spoke of UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed’s visit to China in 1990, which he said helped lay the foundation for the two countries’ relationship today.
Yesterday, Sheikh Mohamed and Mr Xi witnessed the signing of 16 agreements.
Among these was a $11 billion deal between Dubai’s Emaar Properties and Beijing Daxing International Airport to build residential and leisure facilities across a 500-hectare area of the airport.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, signed a defence and military agreement with his Chinese counterpart.
Co-operation deals were also signed with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment and the UAE Office for Future Food Security. Culture and tourism agreements were also agreed with the National Museum of China, and the two
countries agreed to introduce Chinese language lessons into the UAE school curriculum.
Abu Dhabi Global Market and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company signed a deal with key Chinese entities to boost bilateral co-operation and increase cross-border investment.
Adnoc also agreed a deal with state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corporation to explore collaboration in upstream and downstream segments of the oil and gas sector. The agreement covers ultra-sour gas development in Abu Dhabi, exploration for offshore hydrocarbons and the sale and purchase of liquefied natural gas, for which China is the world’s largest buyer, Adnoc said.
“The future collaboration opportunities agreed today with CNOOC reinforce Adnoc’s strategic approach to partners that offer technology, capital or market access to maximise value from Abu Dhabi’s vast oil and gas resources,” said Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Adnoc group chief executive and UAE Minister of State.
The UAE accounts for 4 per cent of the world’s crude production, much of it from fields owned and operated by Adnoc. China, which imports less than half of its oil from the Middle East, is playing an increasingly prominent role in the exploration and production of hydrocarbon resources in the UAE.
ADGM, one of the fastest growing financial hubs in the Middle East, separately signed four pacts with key Chinese institutions that will help boost cross-border investments and deepen economic and financial ties between the two countries.
The financial free zone’s signing of three agreements with the National Development and Reform Commission, China National Nuclear Corporation, and China Everbright Group in Beijing were overseen by Sheikh Mohamed and Mr Xi.
ADGM signed the fourth agreement with One-Connect Financial Technology to foster greater cross-border financial technology opportunities, on the sidelines of the UAE-China Economic Forum which opened in Beijing yesterday.
“These four collaborations underscore the key industries and sector strengths of both China and Abu Dhabi,” said Ahmed Al Sayegh, Minister of State and chairman of ADGM.
The four new pacts are part of ADGM’s efforts to engage key Chinese stakeholders since the establishment of its China representative office in Beijing in May last year.
Under the preliminary agreement signed with NDRC, a macroeconomic management agency under China’s State Council, the two sides will support Chinese and UAE enterprises to have a presence in the two markets and help them explore possible investment opportunities.
NDRC and ADGM also plan to establish a Belt-and-Road investment and financing centre that will support major economic joint projects between the two countries.
Under the co-operation agreement with CNNC – one of the largest government-owned companies that has established a complete nuclear technology industry framework – ADGM will help the corporation’s globalisation plans. The Chinese company will set up its global treasury, investment and financing centre in ADGM.
By anchoring at Abu Dhabi’s financial hub, CNNC plans to foster greater collaboration to support the nuclear energy industry, infrastructure and equipment manufacturing globally, ADGM said.
Sheikh Mohamed’s visit, which ends today, followed Mr Xi’s tour of the UAE last year, when the two countries signed 13 agreements to increase collaborations.
The two sides will support Chinese and UAE enterprises to have a presence in both markets