Nahyan bin Mubarak commends relations binding UAE, GCC Countries with UK and US

Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, has commended relations binding the UAE and the GCC Countries with both the United Kingdom and the United States.

Sheikh Nahyan said that these relations are based on the solid foundation of deep respect for and appreciation of other cultures, ethnicities, languages, religions, and beliefs. "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 Sheikh Nahyan in honour of the UK Parliamentary Delegation and board members and executive staff of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, Sheikh Nahyan said, "As a global crossroads, the UAE embraces diversity. Now in our forty-fifth 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.'' Sheikh 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 UK delegation, Sheikh 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 endeavor and that cooperation among us is essential for shaping a peaceful and prosperous global future. We are honored 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."

Sheikh Nahyan also welcome 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 our country in the challenging period following 9/11.

''Times remain evermore challenging, and so all of us in this region are deeply grateful for the recent establishment of an independent, non-profit institution dedicated to increasing the understanding and appreciation of the social, economic, and political diversity of the Arab Gulf states. We are eager to support the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington as it seeks to encourage thoughtful debate and to inform American decision-makers about the reality of our region and of each of our countries. Such actions, I know, will only deepen the friendship between the UAE and the USA.'' "As friends, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates and the other GCC countries have shared many things, much to our mutual advantage. Most prominent in my mind are the values that we have shared a devotion to our own cultures and a deep respect for and appreciation of other cultures, ethnicities, languages, religions, and beliefs," Sheikh Nahyan added.