At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, the United Arab Emirates' President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan paid a state visit to China from May 28 to June 1 and attended the opening ceremony of the 10th Ministerial Conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum.
"It is in the interest of both the UAE and China to have a comprehensive strategic partnership, which both countries are already working on," said Mr. Shahid Hussain, Founder & CEO at Green Proposition Consulting Firm. "This is a historic moment. And I would use the wording by President Xi Jinping: the UAE and China relationship can be said to be a fine example of the relationship between China and other states in the new era."
In an exclusive interview with GDToday, Mr. Hussain noted that China and the UAE have been cooperating since the ancient Silk Road era, and many Chinese and UAE people consider each other's country to be a second home.
Bilateral cooperation between the two countries has seen fruitful results, especially under the Belt and Road Initiative. In his opinion, more cooperation is to be expected in various industries and sectors, including finance, e-commerce, cultural exchanges, and more in the future.
Great potential to be expected of China-UAE cooperation in finance and more sectors
In the talk with UAE's President Mohamed, President Xi said that China stands ready to work with the UAE to continuously promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, strengthen synergy of development strategies, and take the establishment of a high-level committee on China-UAE investment and cooperation as an opportunity to push for more outcomes in bilateral cooperation, including welcoming the participation of Arab banking institutions in the RMB cross-border payment and clearing system, deepening exchanges and cooperation in the field of digital currencies of the central banks, and more.
Mr. Hussain considers cooperation on the RMB cross-border payment and clearing system a piece of good news for investors from both sides, since the biggest challenges for investing in sizable projects are exchange rate and currency swap. "So now we are talking about getting rid of that currency swap, and then RMB can be used as a currency for both parts of the world. That is good news for sure."
In cross-border trade, e-commerce also attracted Mr. Hussain's attention. UAE can serve as a stop for China to enter the Middle East market and even the European one, while China boasts e-commerce leading players such as Alibaba and Tencent, providing bilateral e-commerce cooperation with considerable potential and exciting prospects.
China and UAE people strengthen communication and conduct win-win cooperation
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the UAE. As President Xi noted, the UAE is an important comprehensive strategic partner of China, and China-UAE relations have set a good example for China-Arab state relations in the new era.
In light of the history of China-UAE cooperation, Mr. Hussain pointed out that the UAE is an important strategic hub as China cooperates with the Arab world because the UAE is situated at a prime location in the region and is also a close partner of China. "China always has a good relationship with the Arab world because of the Silk Road, and rightly so. The UAE right now is China's biggest trading partner in the Arab world, and for the UAE, China is the biggest trading partner," said Mr. Hussain.
The Arab countries and China have been cooperation partners and forming friendly ties ever since the ancient Silk Road times. Since the Belt and Road Initiative was launched, China has signed BRI cooperation documents with all 22 Arab countries and the League of Arab States, under which the two sides have jointly implemented more than 200 large-scale projects within the framework of BRI and have both benefited.
Mr. Hussain listed some cases of BRI cooperation that impressed him the most, one of which is the Dubai Traders Market project. He observed that the market essentially makes the lives of SMEs and traders easier because logistical charges are reduced, thus facilitating the development of local business and the economy.
Mr. Hussain also pointed out that languages and cultural understanding are important in people-to-people exchanges between China and the UAE. He also noted that shared Silk Road memories could be a valuable source of cultural innovation today, to facilitate China-UAE cultural cooperation and deepen the understanding of each other's cultures.
"It can allow us to know more about China's history and the unique relationship between Arabs and the Chinese people. From the Silk Road era, we have such good stories from those times." Mr. Hussain believed that this is a good opportunity for Chinese filmmakers to start cooperating with UAE counterparts, and some of the greatest movies of all time may come up in this cooperation.
China plays a pivotal role in sustaining region peace
In his speech at the opening ceremony of the 10th ministerial meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum, President Xi promised to work closely with the Arab states to make relations between China and Arab states a model for maintaining world peace and stability.
When it comes to China's role in resolving international disputes and maintaining peace, Mr. Hussain hails China as a neutral mediator. He also explained why China is suitable for being such a mediator: "China would never want to have a situation that is not good for the rest of the world. So that's why I think China can play a neutral role in resolving some of the conflicts that are plaguing this part of the world, and China is actually doing so. Hopefully, we'll see more from China in the coming years."
Reporter | Guo Chuhua
Video | Deng Yingheng
Poster | Lulu
Editor | Olivia Yang, Steven, Abby, James
