Page 669 - MOE ENGLISH PR REPORT - FEBRUARY 2024

2/22/24, 2:44 PM Interview: UAE aims to ‘bring back multilateralism’ at MC13 - Borderlex
There are strong headwinds against multilateral rules-based system at present. Do these
present threats to your country’s interests?

Let’s look at it from a different angle. It’s important not to take globalisation for granted. We
believe in an open, rules-based, multilateral trading system as one of the main drivers for growth,

innovation, job creation and development.

So we see open trade as presenting an opportunity.

Protectionism and unilateralism present a downside risk. We are signing economic partnerships

with many other countries which present growth opportunities for us. We encourage all
governments to look at the long-term impacts of what they do, rather than the short-term gain

that they can generate from taking such measures against other.

The UAE is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council, along with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,

Oman, Qatar and Bahrain. Will the GCC members speak with one voice at MC13?

We have coordination meetings among the GCC members from time to time. We will have a

ministerial coordination meeting the day before MC13 starts, to reaffirm our positions as a
group.

All GCC members negotiate individually – but we coordinate our positions among ourselves and
ensure that our positions are aligned, or close to each other.

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