The UAE-Saudi Forum "Together Forever" started here today under the patronage of Abu Dhabi's Ministry of Presidential Affairs and organized by Abu Dhabi's Ministry of Economy, Department of Economic Development and Chamber of Commerce and Industry in cooperation with the Higher Corporation for Specialized Economic Zones (ZonesCorp) in the presence of Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Gasabi, Minister of Commerce and Investment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Eng. Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy with participation of officials, investors, businessmen and businesswomen from the two countries. Saif Mohammed Al-Hajeri, Chairman of Abu Dhabi's Department of Economic Development said that the forum comes as part of the distinguished relations between the two brotherly countries, praising the efforts of the Saudi-UAE Coordination Council which represents an exceptional model for serious cooperation and activating its ties. For his part, Eng. Al-Mansoori noted that the forum reflects the strength of bilateral relations that transcend all diplomatic formalities and not confine to the limits of common interests and they are solid ties based on the fundamentals of civilization, history and Islamic and Arab values. He pointed out that bilateral relations are still witnessing continuous development, driven by the firm will and determination of the leaderships of the two countries, represented by President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to promote cooperation between the two countries in various fields of development. Al-Mansouri pointed out that the figures and indicators of trade and investment reflect the depth of the ties between the two countries and the efficiency of the important efforts as the Kingdom is the fourth largest trading partner of the UAE worldwide and the first Arab partner in 2016. Non-oil trade witnessed a significant leap of 30% over the past six years, rising from about 55 billion UAE dirhams in 2011 to more than 71.5 billion last year. The Kingdom is also the third largest importer of non-oil products of the UAE, the second largest country in terms of re-exported goods and the 11th largest exporter to the UAE. The UAE is at the forefront of investors in the Kingdom with a total value of more than 30 billion UAE dirhams ($ 9 billion). --More 19:28 LOCAL TIME 16:28 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/1676315
