Sharjah 24 – WAM: Saqr Ghobash, Speaker of the Federal National Council (FNC), highlighted the historic relations between the UAE and China and their mutual understanding of various regional and international issues.

Their relations have become a strategic partnership and their bilateral cooperation in addressing the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic through the joint project, entitled, "Life Sciences and Vaccine Manufacturing in the UAE", represents a regional and international model of cooperation and solidarity between governments in addressing challenges, he added.

Ghobash made this statement during his remote meeting, on 7th July, 2021, with Li Zhanshu, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Chinese National People's Congress.

During the meeting, both sides discussed the overall cooperation between China and the UAE, most notably in addressing the coronavirus pandemic, as well as ways of enhancing the ties between their parliaments.

They also highlighted the importance of adopting a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by their parliaments to serve their mutual interests and strengthen their coordination in international events, most notably during parliamentary events and the International Parliamentary Union (IPU) meetings.

Ghobash then affirmed the UAE’s successful efforts to address the pandemic and the flexibility and resilience of its medical and logistic infrastructure, which enabled it to be ranked first as the most vaccinated country in the world, noting that 71 percent of the Emirati population have been vaccinated.

Li highlighted the profound historic ties between the UAE and China, noting that the meeting coincides with the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Chinese Communist Party and the UAE's Golden Jubilee, and celebrates the start of the strategic partnership between the two countries.