By Park Gil-ja and Yoon Jihye
President Moon Jae-in and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan on Feb. 27 agreed in their summit to strengthen bilateral cooperation in high-tech industries to develop a so-called special strategic partnership between both sides.
The night before at Cheong Wa Dae, Al-Nahyan had attended a dinner hosted by President Moon on the first day of the crown prince’s two-day visit to Korea. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is Korea's top export market in the Middle East and biggest partner in human resource exchanges in the region.
In a joint statement issued on Feb. 27, both leaders said more active high-level consultation channels, the Barakah nuclear power plant project and defense cooperation had bolstered bilateral relations. They also agreed to facilitate more people-to-people exchanges through the UAE Ambassador Program and youth exchanges, as well as seek mutual growth befitting the age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Al-Nahyan lauded the progress in inter-Korean relations and said the UAE, as Seoul’s ally, consistently supports the establishment of permanent peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
The crown prince’s visit, his fifth to Korea, reciprocated that by President Moon to the UAE in March last year.
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