China – United Arab Emirates relations refer to the diplomatic relations between the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

. Diplomatic ties were first established in 1984. The UAE maintains an embassy in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

and a consulate-general in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

while China has an embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulate-general in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

. The UAE and China have been strong international allies, with significant cooperation across economic, political and cultural aspects.

Background

The relations between the two have historically been mounted on high-level trade. In 2007, China-UAE bilateral trade scaled new highs, exceeding $19.4 billion and indicating a growth rate of 41 percent. There are also some 2,000 Chinese firms operating in the UAE and a large community of Chinese in the United Arab Emirates who are involved primarily in the construction sector.UAE-China trade exceeds $19 bn - ThaIndian
/ref> Additionally, the UAE is China's second largest trading partner in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...

region and the largest in terms of buying Chinese products. According to

Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao (born 15 September 1942) is a retired Chinese politician who served as the Premier of the State Council from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic polic ...

, "the UAE is one of China's most important economic partners in the Persian Gulf region, serving as a transfer center for Chinese products to the Middle East and African markets." He also encouraged Emirati businesses to invest in China and Chinese companies to invest in the UAE, noting that the expansion of bilateral cooperation facilitates the fundamental interests of both nations. During a visit to China in 2010, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi expressed that the UAE was keen on strengthening its strategic partnership with China and developing commercial and investment cooperation.

Ventures

In May 2010, both sides inked a memorandum of understanding with the aim of pushing forward cooperation in railway construction. Under the document, signed by

Liu Zhijun / ( or ) is an East Asian surname. pinyin: in Mandarin Chinese, in Cantonese. It is the family name of the Han dynasty emperors. The character originally meant 'kill', but is now used only as a surname. It is listed 252nd in the classic text ...

and Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the two sides will launch extensive cooperation in such areas as railway development, engineering construction, technical exchanges and personnel training.

Diplomatic visits

In July 2018,

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

general secretary

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, ...

visited UAE. Xi meets Prime Minister

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum ( ar, محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم, links=no; ; born 15 July 1949) is the vice president, prime minister, and minister of defence of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as well as the ruler of Dubai. ...

& Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. Xi was awarded

Order of Zayed The Order of Zayed ( ar, وسام زايد) is the United Arab Emirates' highest civil decoration named after the first president of the UAE, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ( ar, زَايِد بِن سُلْط� ...

by President

Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ( ar,  خليفة بن زايد بن سلطان آل نهيان‎; 7 September 1948 – 13 May 2022) was the second president of the United Arab Emirates and the ruler of Abu Dhabi, serving from ...

Belt and Road initiative

China and the UAE signed $3.4 billion worth of deals as part of China's Belt and Road Initiative. The initiative aims to use the

Port of Jebel Ali Port of Jebel Ali, also known as Mina Jebel Ali ( ar, ميناء جبل علي), is a deep port located in Jebel Ali, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Jebel Ali is the world's ninth busiest port, the largest man-made harbour, and the biggest and by ...

to ship Chinese products to the world using the UAE's position as both sea and land trading hub.

Immigration

There are over 180,000 people of Chinese origin living in the UAE.

Human rights

In July 2019, UN ambassadors of 37 countries, including UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, signed a joint letter to the UNHRC defending China's treatment of Uyghurs in the

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

region. In June 2020, UAE was one of 53 countries that backed the

Hong Kong national security law The Hong Kong national security law, officially the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a piece of national security legislation concerning Hong Kong. It ...

at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:China-United Arab Emirates relations

Bilateral relations of the United Arab Emirates