Mohammad to be honoured on German visit

Berlin: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will today pay a historic visit to Germany, where he will hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel, foreign and communications ministers and other officials.

Shaikh Mohammad will be honoured by Berlin University tomorrow.

Shaikh Mohammad and German officials will discuss political, economic and cultural issues, Mohammad Ahmad Al Mahmoud, UAE Ambassador to Germany, told media delegates accompanying the UAE leader.

The visit comes as a result of the distinguished relations between the UAE and Germany, especially the partnership agreement signed between the two countries in 2004.

"We will reap the fruits of this visit soon, and we, in the UAE, have a special appreciation of the relations between our country and Germany, due to its stands and non-colonial history," Al Mahmoud said.

"There has been a strategic partnership between the UAE and Germany since the visit of former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 2003, and the signing of the strategic partnership agreement in 2004.

"Germans give a special attention to Shaikh Mohammad's visit, which will see the signing of several agreements," the ambassador said.

He expressed hope that the visit would create a balance in the trade between the UAE and Germany, and that Germany would have the policy of open skies to allow national carriers such as Emirates and Etihad Airways to launch new services to Berlin.

There are 79 weekly flights to the UAE from German cities, which in turn, will lead to increasing the number of tourists and visiting businessmen.

The ambassador said about 6,000 Emirati patients are treated in German hospitals yearly at a cost of 90 million euros.

There are also over a 100 Emirati students who study medicine, military science and other disciplines in Germany, he said, pointing out that there were more potential avenues of cooperation in the fields of science and technology between the two countries.

"German stands towards Arab and Islamic issues are clear and based on reason and thoughtfulness," he added.

German exports to the UAE reached about 5.4 billion euros in 2006, which makes up 25 per cent of its exports to all Arab countries, worth 2.15 billion euros.

UAE exports to Germany increased in 2006 by 25.7 per cent over 2005, reaching 469.3 million euros, while in 2007 German exports to the UAE reached 4.88 billion euros until October, with German imports from the UAE reaching 336.8 million Euros in the same period.

Although the number of German companies operating in the UAE have increased, the size of German investments in the country remained humble.

According to statistics from the Federal Foreign Trade Authority, German investments in the UAE rose from 215 million euros in 2002 to 461 million euros in 2005.