UAE-France Joint Statement On Occasion Of UAE President’s State Visit To France

At the invitation of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan conducted a two-day visit to Paris, the capital of France, on 18 and 19 July.

The French President congratulated His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on his election as President of the UAE. He also wished the people of the UAE continued well-being and prosperity under Sheikh Mohamed’s leadership.

Both leaders commended the depth of the strategic partnership between both countries, an alliance anchored in longstanding friendship and bilateral cooperation. They also emphasised a joint commitment to expand their collaboration across all fields, including economic, cultural, military, energy, education and environmental fields. Both leaders also discussed ways to tackle global and regional challenges.

The crisis in Ukraine
Both leaders expressed deep concern regarding the Russia-Ukraine war. They discussed the humanitarian situation in Ukraine due to war and its effects on the global market. They underscored the urgent need to intensify diplomatic efforts to solve the ongoing conflict, and Sheikh Mohamed commended Macron’s continuing efforts in solving the matter.

Energy and Food Security
Both leaders agreed to establish a France-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Energy Partnership to tackle food insecurity, which is a major step in fostering energy security and affordability. The leaders also welcomed the agreement between TotalEnergies and ADNOC on fuel provision, intending to increase the security of fuel supply in France.

The UAE announced its support for the Food and Agriculture Resilience Mission (FARM) initiative to support the Agriculture Market Information System (AMIS) and find ways to mitigate ongoing pressure on global supply chains due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Economy, Investment, and Industry
Both leaders praised the recently launched UAE-France Business Council, intending to strengthen bilateral business opportunities for the benefit of the two countries. The Council will reportedly serve as a tangible outlet to expand the already constructive cooperation that exists between the two countries. The leaders want to further expand the vibrant economic partnership between the two countries.

Climate Action
Macron congratulated the UAE on the future hosting of COP28, the Global UN climate change conference, in 2023. The French President offered France’s full support, including through its expertise derived from COP21. The two leaders also signed an MoU on Climate Action, which will enable France and the UAE to enhance their cooperation.

Macron also congratulated the UAE on the successful operation of its nuclear energy programme. The two leaders also commended the progress made regarding the MoU on Decarbonised Hydrogen.
They also agreed to work closely on the development of a marine research collaborative programme to promote a sustainable blue economy.

Health sector
The UAE and France’s President also agreed on the importance of the health sector as a major domain for expansion in bilateral cooperation. The successful collaboration between the two countries in the health sector is the Cardiovascular Diseases Prevention project between the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre and Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) (International). Based on the signing of the MoU in 2020, the project was implemented by a team of French experts, who helped achieve growth, sustainable development and global competitiveness.

They also welcomed the signing of an MoU on Cooperation between the Institute Pasteur and the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre. They also understand the importance of higher education that focuses on developing healthcare expertise.

Education, Culture, and Space
Both leaders recognised the importance of education, culture and science as a major domain for expansion in bilateral cooperation. Both leaders highlighted the contributions of existing key projects, such as the Sorbonne Abu Dhabi and the efforts to expand cooperation in higher education, such as with Ecole 42, EM Normandie Business School, and ESCP Business School. They encouraged the expansion of French higher education institutions in the UAE, as well as the expansion of French language teaching in UAE schools.

They also signed multiple agreements related to earth observation, climate change initiatives, and lunar exploration to strengthen collaboration in the space sector.

Peace and Stability
The two leaders understand the importance of peace and stability in the world. As the founding members of the International Security Alliance since 2017, the UAE and France reaffirmed their commitment to eradicating hate speech, radicalisation, extremism, and transnational crime by exchanging experiences and continuing joint operations with fellow member states.

The two leaders discussed ways for promoting peace, dialogue and diplomacy across the region and beyond. They also expressed hope for the revival of the Iran nuclear deal. The UAE President commended the successful Baghdad Conference on Partnership and Cooperation, and the French President underscored the benefits of the Abraham Accords. The French President also commended the UAE’s role as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), and Sheikh Mohamed commended the achievements in multilateralism under the French Presidency of the European Union (EU).