Consul-general hopes Expo 2020 will bolster ties

Dubai: For years, the UAE has served as China’s second-largest trading partner in the Gulf and the largest export market in terms of buying Chinese products. The 250,000-strong Chinese community in the UAE is involved in different sectors.

In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, Weibin Tang, consul-general of China in the UAE, put the growing UAE-China relationship in the right perspective.

“On December 1, 1984, the UAE and China officially established diplomatic relations. Since then the two countries have continuously developed friendly bilateral ties through cooperation in politics, trade, economic and culture.”

In January 2012 the UAE and China signed a strategic partnership deal which reflects “the historic friendly relationship that binds the leaderships and peoples of the UAE and China,” as His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, observed.

In 2013, UAE-China trade scaled a new level, exceeding $46.2 billion (Dh169.6 billion) and indicated a growth rate of 14 per cent.

“This year, we celebrate the 30th anniversary of our diplomatic relations,” Tang said. “As Dubai has won the bid to host Expo 2020 there is an opportunity to enhance our bilateral relations.”