Toronto: Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister, accompanied by John Baird, the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, inaugurated a new Consulate-General of the UAE in Toronto.
The consulate strengthens the UAE’s diplomatic presence in North America — the UAE already has embassies in Ottawa, Washington, and Mexico City.
The new consulate will help strengthen cooperation in the trade sector and among business communities in both countries, officials said.
The opening ceremony was attended by a number of senior officials.
Shaikh Abdullah later visited the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs, which was founded in 2000. At the school, Shaikh Abdullah and Baird signed a memorandum of understanding on political consultations between the UAE and Canada.
Shaikh Abdullah later met with Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario. The two leaders discussed avenues of cooperation between the UAE and Canada and ways to enhance them to serve the common interests of both countries, as well as reviewing promising opportunities in the UAE and Canada.
Shaikh Abdullah highlighted the importance of bilateral relations between the two nations and called for boosting them in all fields.
Shaikh Abdullah and Baird issued on Wednesday the following joint statement from Canada: “We have been honoured to have had the opportunity to travel together across Canada to commemorate the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Canada and UAE.
“We launched the Shared Strategic Agenda [SSA] process in April 2013. Since then, we have reviewed it every six months. Through the SSA, we cooperate in the pursuit of the shared goals of enhancing economic prosperity for our societies, strengthening regional and international security, and cooperating on development objectives in third countries.
The past six months has made even clearer to us the strategic value of our engagement. Today, we are, once again, setting ambitious targets for the next six months.
“Today, as a sign of our growing strategic relationship, we are pleased to announce a number of important upcoming visits. His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, have accepted invitations to visit Canada.
