UAE’s FM, French President attends event at Metropolitan Museum.

H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, has participated in a cultural event at the Egyptian art display of the Temple of Dendur, dedicated to the deity, Isis, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan, New York City, alongside French President, Francois Hollande, US Vice President, Joe Biden, and the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Irina Bokova, along with other notable guests.

During the event, President Hollande revealed a joint initiative between the UAE and France to create a global fund to protect endangered world heritage sites.

He noted that the fund, which will be officially announced during an international conference on endangered world heritage, to be organised by the UAE and France on 2nd and 3rd December, aims to finance the protection of works of art and monuments, assure the restoration and reconstruction of places of historical importance, and train specialists and archaeologists.

The fund will enjoy special tax incentives to attract as many sponsors as possible, he added, noting that France will refer to the United Nations Security Council to require the institution of general standards for protecting endangered cultural heritage.

Other figures who attended the event included US Deputy Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, US Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, Evan Ryan and the Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Thomas Campbell.