UAE and EU launch talks to forge strategic economic partnership

The UAE and the European Union have launched talks on formalizing a strategic economic partnership, aiming to deepen cooperation in such areas as green energy and artificial intelligence.

The negotiations build on earlier efforts this year to advance a free-trade pact, with multiple rounds of discussions already underway.

“This year marks an important inflection point,” UAE Minister of State Lana Nusseibeh said today at a Ministry of Foreign Affairs event in Abu Dhabi, The National reports. She described the parallel agreements as representing “a joint commitment to elevate our relationship to a new and more ambitious level.”

The EU is the UAE’s second-largest trading partner and a key investment destination, while the UAE is a major export and investment partner for Europe in the Middle East and North Africa.

Since 2022, the UAE has struck at least 20 trade agreements, known as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements, including with Israel, India, Indonesia, Turkey, New Zealand, Vietnam and Cambodia.