Sharjah 24 – WAM: Ahmed bin Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State, participated in the 9th Summit of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) and the 28th meeting of the Ministerial Council of the ACS, which were held in Antigua, the Republic of Guatemala under the theme "Building Resilience through Partnerships in the Caribbean". The meetings focused on issues related to climate change, energy security and economic development.
During his speech at the summit, Al Sayegh stressed the strength of relations and the many common interests of the UAE and the Caribbean region, including supporting economic growth, food security and sustainability.
Al Sayegh also highlighted the UAE's hosting of the 28th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which will take place from November 30 to December 12, 2023 in Dubai Expo City. Al Sayegh emphasised that the COP28 conference will stress the importance of mobilizing the efforts of all concerned parties and the need for international cooperation in order to achieve a coordinated response on global climate action and achieve tangible progress in addressing the effects of climate change.
In this context, Al Sayegh noted the UAE's keenness to explore opportunities for cooperation with Caribbean countries, which are amongst the most vulnerable to the repercussions of climate change, to benefit from opportunities that will promote sustainable economic and social development in the region. Al Sayegh stressed that the UAE's approach is based on building bridges of communication and cooperation with the international community, which the country will also follow in its presidency of the COP28 conference to focus on inclusiveness and help achieve practical results and outcomes.
On the sidelines of the summit meetings, Al Sayegh met with President Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala, heads of participating delegations, and a number of foreign ministers of participating Caribbean countries, where they discussed a number of issues of common interest, as well as ways to enhance cooperation between the UAE and the Caribbean. An air transport agreement, a memorandum of understanding for political consultations, and a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of cybersecurity were also signed with the Republic of Guatemala.