United Arab Emirates: 4th High-level Political Dialogue held in Abu Dhabi on 27 May

The 4th High-level Political Dialogue between the European Union (EU) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was held in Abu Dhabi on 27 May, co-chaired by Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) for Political Affairs Olof Skoog and the Assistant Minister for Political Affairs and the Foreign Minister's Envoy for the EU, H.E. Lana Nusseibeh.

Both sides welcomed the landmark announcement of the launch of free trade talks between the EU and the UAE. They emphasised the importance of the EU - UAE partnership and their commitment to further strengthen it by facilitating cooperation on the bilateral front but also on key regional issues both in Europe and in the Middle East.

The discussed putting the partnership on a broader institutional basis by concluding a EU - UAE Strategic Partnership Agreement. The meeting also covered cooperation in multilateral fora, as well as current regional and international developments such as the war in Gaza, the situation in Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Yemen and security in the Red Sea, Sudan, as well as the war in Ukraine. 

The EU and the UAE also discussed the intensification of EU-GCC cooperation, key for the security and prosperity of the two regions, following up on the commitments made during the October 2024 EU-GCC Summit in Brussels and ahead of the upcoming UAE GCC Presidency.