UAE participates in GCC FMs and Minister of Russian FA meeting

The fourth round of the Strategic Dialogue between Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the GCC member states and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation took place in Moscow on 26th May, 2016.

The meeting was co-chaired by Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and Adel Al-Jubeir, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, current GCC Presidency, with participation of Foreign Ministers of the GCC States and Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, GCC Secretary-General.

Dr. Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs led the UAE delegation at the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, Lavrov welcomed the audience, hailing the fourth round of the GCC-Russian Strategic Dialogue which was launched five years ago. He also wished that this dialogue would be a new impetus to strengthening co-operation between the two sides.

He said that the GCC states and Russia held a number of meetings, citing that some GCC leaders held meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Lavrov pointed out these efforts would contribute to the development of co-operation between the two sides.

In his speech at the beginning of the meeting, Al-Jubeir expressed GCC's appreciation to Russia for hosting the strategic meeting between the two sides. He also pointed to the GCC states' pursuance to achieve further co-operation and co-ordination with Russia in the best interest of the GCC peoples and Russia as well as to serve security and peace in the region.

Dr. Abdul Latif Al-Zayani said that the GCC states hoped that this meeting would strengthen joint relations and co-operation. He also added that the dialogue between the GCC and the Republic of the Russian Federation was launched in November 2011 in Abu Dhabi, where a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Strategic Dialogue was signed.

He also noted that the MoU had developed a mechanism for dialogue and co-operation between the GCC and the Russian Federation in the political, economic and cultural fields.

Al Zayani also expressed the wish that the meeting would contribute to enhancing the strategic dimension in the relations of the two sides in order to serve common interests and to promote international peace and security.

The two sides also tackled the GCC-Russian ties, joint co-operation in various fields, the latest political and security developments in the region and the international efforts to fight terrorism, as well as the latest regional and global issues of mutual interest.

For his part, Dr. Gargash said that the meeting was fruitful, adding that the strategic dialogue represents an important platform to brief Moscow on the GCC approach towards the developments in the region and "allows us to have a depth insight about the Russian approach towards the region."

He added, "In this context, we have seen a greater understanding from the Russian side, and through dialogue and communication, we seek to strengthen these significant ties, which would result in joint positive results.

For his part, Dr. Gargash indicated that the meeting was fruitful, adding that the strategic dialogue represents an important platform to brief Moscow on the GCC approach towards the developments in the region and "allows us to have an in-depth reading about the Russian approach towards the region."

He added, "In this context, we have seen a greater understanding from the Russian side, and through dialogue and communication, we seek to strengthen these significant ties, which would result in joint positive results."

Source :WAM