Abu Dhabi: UAE’s relations with the United Kingdom and United States are based on the solid foundation of deep respect for and appreciation of other cultures, ethnicities, languages, religions, and beliefs, a minister said on Tuesday.

Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, commended relations binding the UAE and the GCC countries. “We have shared the desire for global peace and the safety, prosperity, and well-being of our communities,” he added.

During a dinner ceremony hosted by Shaikh Nahyan in honour of the UK Parliamentary Delegation and board members and executive staff of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, Shaikh Nahyan said, “As a global crossroads, the UAE embraces diversity. Now in our 45th year as an independent nation, we have welcomed people from all over the world and sheltered them under our commodious Arab tent. We are proud to exemplify tolerance, understanding, and mutual respect for all people. We are proud of our respect for the universal values that define civilised behaviour.”

“Thus, I am quite comfortable in welcoming the United Kingdom’s distinguished Parliamentary Delegation marked as it must be by distinctly diverse viewpoints- — Labour, Conservative, and Scottish National — though united by an interest in our country, an interest that flatters and gratifies us. Rest assured that you can each find many a fellow party member among our invaluable population of over 120,000 UK residents. No matter what their political affiliation, they, like you, represent their country in a splendid fashion. Their knowledge, skills, industry, and good will have benefited our country and brought it very close to yours.”

Shaikh Nahyan expressed confidence that this productive relationship between the two countries would grow even stronger as both countries operate in the demanding environment of a global, interdependent world.

Welcoming the delegation, Shaikh Nahyan said, “Your visit to our country declares that Great Britain and the United Arab Emirates have worked well together in practically every field of endeavour and that cooperation among us is essential for shaping a peaceful and prosperous global future. We are honoured by your presence. And, in truth, I am especially delighted today to share with you the conviction that Britain and the United Arab Emirates are bound together by a very special relationship. Our political, commercial, and educational linkages are remarkable in a period of world history marked more by division and strife than by common purpose and cooperation. These linkages are deeply rooted in confidence and trust and provide a strong and stable foundation for our friendly relations, now and in the future. I am confident that this productive relationship between our two countries will grow even stronger as both countries operate in the demanding environment of a global, interdependent world.”

Shaikh Nahyan also welcomed the board members and executive staff of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, saying that he was pleased that the Institute members from the United States include its president, Marcelle Wahba, a dear friend of the UAE “known so well to us as the American Ambassador to this country in the challenging period following 9/11.