Addis Ababa: The United Arab Emirates has joined the African Union as an observer member, thus becoming the first Gulf state and the second Arab country to join the African organisation.
Dr Yousuf Eisa Hassan Sabri, UAE Ambassador to Ethiopia, delivered to the President of the African Union Commission Dr. Jean Ping a letter from Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister, pertaining to UAE’s accession to the Union as an observer member and the appointment of Ambassador Sabri as UAE’s observer at the African Union.
The AU Commission chief, at a meeting with the ambassador at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, expressed happiness over the ratification of UAE’s accession as the observer member and spelt out his hope that UAE will play a crucial role in enhancing Arab-African relations.
The accession of the UAE to African Union is considered one of the country’s major gains at the international forums, as the African Union plays an important role in the international arena in general and on the African arena in particular.
UAE’s accession will enable it to attend the AU summits and conferences and present topics and issues of importance that concern both UAE and Africa, thus paving way to develop UAE’s relations with African countries.
