Abu Dhabi, September 22 / WAM / His Excellency Yousef Mana Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador to the United States, and Her Excellency Martina Strong, U.S. Ambassador to the UAE, affirmed that the official visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, may God protect him, to the American capital Washington tomorrow (Monday), during which he will meet U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House, highlights a fifty-year journey of partnerships between the two countries that have contributed to prosperity, security, and scientific progress.

The UAE ambassador in Washington and the U.S. ambassador to the UAE said in a joint article titled "The UAE-U.S. Partnership: A Lasting Commitment to Progress and Innovation" on the occasion of the visit that the two countries continue to work together to enhance security and stability in the Middle East, and stand side by side to support multilateral diplomatic solutions and provide urgent humanitarian aid in Gaza and Sudan. They explained that joint cooperation in the fields of defense and counterterrorism contributes to strengthening security and stability in both countries and the world. In this regard, they noted that the UAE Armed Forces have stood alongside U.S. forces in six different conflicts over the past thirty years, contributing to strengthening the close relations between the two countries.

Yousef Mana Al Otaiba and Martina Strong noted that as these partnerships continue, the UAE and the United States look forward to achieving a shared vision for a more prosperous and stable future for the region, and enhancing cooperation between them over the next fifty years.

They pointed out that in 1974, a delegation from the U.S. space agency NASA, including a number of astronauts and scientists, visited the capital Abu Dhabi, where they provided a comprehensive explanation of the Apollo program missions to reach the lunar surface before the founding father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul. At that time, no one imagined that the UAE would become a major partner in the Artemis program led by NASA, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface, where the UAE plays an active role in this program by supporting the Lunar Gateway space station project, which will become the first space station in lunar orbit.

The two ambassadors said that in the field of advanced technology and artificial intelligence, we see the UAE-U.S. path moving with unparalleled vitality and speed, as the American Silicon Valley and the UAE's Silicon Oasis share research and innovation projects aimed at enhancing research in the field of artificial intelligence, extending from laboratories to boardrooms and advanced production facilities. The journey along Sheikh Zayed Road from Abu Dhabi to Dubai is a familiar routine for any American executive, who must pass by billboards for Google, Meta, IBM, and Microsoft that light up both sides of the road.

They referred to the announcement by MGX, a technology investment company in Abu Dhabi, this week of a new partnership with Microsoft, BlackRock, and others to launch a new investment platform in the field of technology infrastructure. The past year also saw cooperation between Cerebras from Silicon Valley and the UAE's G42 Group to deploy some of the world's fastest supercomputers to train AI models in California and Texas. Meanwhile, Mubadala's investment in GlobalFoundries, headquartered in New York, contributes to expanding the U.S. semiconductor industry and creating thousands of jobs in the region's innovation-based economy. In addition, G42 is collaborating with Microsoft Azure to launch a new cloud computing platform in the UAE, along with other partnerships with leading technology companies such as Nvidia, AMD, VAST, and Qualcomm to develop advanced technology infrastructure in the UAE.

Yousef Mana Al Otaiba and Martina Strong said that our two countries recognize the importance of cooperation in technology and science and are committed to expanding this cooperation through new initiatives that include enhancing data protection and sensitive technology standards, deepening cooperation in research and education, and launching programs aimed at narrowing the digital divide by providing basic technologies available to all, while maintaining the highest standards of security and privacy.

They stressed that, as with the nuclear cooperation agreement between the UAE and the United States, these joint efforts may culminate in a new 'gold standard' for securing and accelerating the birth of the next generation of advanced technology. In 2009, the historic '123 Agreement' enabled the UAE to develop its peaceful nuclear energy program, which currently supplies data centers across the country with clean energy and low-emission electricity.

They emphasized that the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, may God protect him, also comes as a continuation of the COP28 climate conference hosted by the UAE in December last year, which marked a pivotal stage in the UAE-U.S. cooperation path in addressing the climate crisis and accelerating the transition to clean energy.

They affirmed that advanced technology and climate action are opening new horizons for trade and business after attracting many American companies, investors, and entrepreneurs to the UAE, which, thanks to its strategic location, has become a global hub for business, media, and culture, and a leading gateway to fast-growing markets in the Middle East, Africa, India, and Asia. They noted that more than 1,500 American companies and institutions operate in the UAE, boosting its economic growth, diversifying its resources, and creating new job opportunities, while more than 50,000 American citizens reside there.

His Excellency Yousef Mana Al Otaiba and Her Excellency Martina Strong explained that bilateral trade and cooperation over the past five decades have brought many benefits to both countries and resulted in UAE investments exceeding one trillion dollars in various sectors of the U.S. economy, making the UAE the largest trading partner of the United States in the Middle East, with bilateral trade volume exceeding $31 billion in 2023.

His Excellency Yousef Mana Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador to the United States, and Her Excellency Martina Strong, U.S. Ambassador to the UAE, said at the conclusion of their article: 'Just as the Apollo mission inspired generations of scientists and engineers, the UAE and the United States will move together towards the future through the Gateway program and other ambitious projects. Nothing is more eloquent than the words of the late Sheikh Zayed upon the first landing on the moon, where he said, "If God wills, man can achieve anything, and nothing is impossible."'