Joint Declaration between Italy and the Emirates

By Alessandro Console

During the State Visit of the President of the United Arab Emirates to Italy on 23–24 February, the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, welcomed His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Both leaders expressed appreciation for the historic and long-standing ties between the two nations and welcomed the significant progress in bilateral diplomatic and economic relations, particularly since Prime Minister Meloni's visit to the UAE in March 2023, when the two leaders decided to elevate bilateral relations to a Strategic Partnership.

Looking ahead, the leaders expressed a shared willingness to further strengthen this partnership, moving towards a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. In this context, the UAE announced a commitment of 40 billion dollars for investments in Italy across key sectors.

Within this collaboration, more than 40 new agreements were signed, launching the implementation of shared objectives and reaffirming the joint commitment to strengthening strategic cooperation in priority sectors such as: economy and investment, defence, energy (including peaceful nuclear energy), sustainable energy and the energy transition, space and the enhancement of cultural heritage. Further areas of mutual interest were also highlighted, including infrastructure, high-tech industry, artificial intelligence, water technologies, ICT, SMEs and startups, agriculture, civil aviation, education, culture and healthcare. The leaders also discussed opportunities for cooperation with other partners, particularly in Africa, and exchanged views on regional developments.

The State Visit of Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Italy, together with Prime Minister Meloni's three visits to the UAE, marks a new era in relations between the United Arab Emirates and Italy, set to further strengthen bilateral ties and promote prosperity, peace and innovation on a global scale.

1. Trade and Economic Relations

Noting the significant growth in bilateral trade, the leaders celebrated the strengthening of economic relations between the two countries, highlighting the progress achieved despite global challenges. Exchanges between the two nations have remained solid, with non-oil bilateral trade reaching 11.7 billion dollars in 2023. The UAE and Italy reaffirmed their commitment to boosting investment flows, noting that Italy has increased its investments in the UAE by 50% over the past five years.

This new phase of collaboration aims to strengthen investment opportunities in key sectors, including energy, technology and advanced manufacturing.

Both parties agreed to reinforce trade relations through a High-Level Business Forum, which will serve as a platform to deepen economic cooperation and explore new investment opportunities in areas such as sustainable energy, connectivity, defence, water, artificial intelligence and advanced technologies.

Italy's role in European markets was a key theme of the dialogue, with the UAE expressing its desire to strengthen its presence in European markets with Italy's support, particularly through negotiations for market liberalisation via a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union.

The leaders also underlined the strategic role of Italy and the UAE as global logistics hubs, able to facilitate connections between Europe and the emerging economies of Asia, helping to strengthen trade and investment between these regions.

2. Cultural Cooperation

The leaders acknowledged the strong ties between the people of the UAE and Italy, underlining the importance of cultural, academic and tourism exchanges.

Both expressed appreciation for the Italian communities in the UAE and for Emirati citizens living in Italy, highlighting their contribution to building strong cultural and educational relations between the two nations.

They agreed to facilitate mobility for students, tourists and business professionals, in order to strengthen bilateral exchanges.

A strong commitment was also expressed to promoting interfaith and intercultural dialogue, countering phenomena such as extremism, racism and hate speech, in line with Resolution 2686 of the United Nations Security Council.

3. Science, Emerging Technologies, Space and Innovation

The leaders confirmed their commitment to space exploration and advanced technological innovation, underlining the importance of collaboration between the two nations in these fields.

New strategic agreements were signed for cooperation in artificial intelligence, digital transformation, drones and space technologies. A key moment of the visit was the signing of a strategic partnership between the UAE and Italy on data centres and artificial intelligence, with a Letter of Intent (LOI) between MGX, G42 and ENI, to enhance AI infrastructure, data centre capacity and sustainable energy solutions.

4. Defence, Cybersecurity and Police Cooperation

The leaders reaffirmed the importance of cooperation in the military and security fields, to strengthen defence capabilities and regional stability.

Cooperation in cybersecurity was discussed, with particular attention to protecting critical infrastructure and combating cyber-crime.

Italy and the UAE agreed to develop the exchange of expertise between their respective police forces to counter transnational crime, drug trafficking, money laundering and human trafficking.

5. Energy Cooperation, Sustainability and Water Resources

The leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to the energy transition and the fight against climate change, promoting renewable energy, technological innovation and environmental sustainability.

They welcomed the signing of a Strategic Partnership Agreement between the UAE, Italy and Albania, focused on solar and wind energy projects and regional energy interconnection.

6. Healthcare Cooperation

The UAE expressed gratitude for the medical support received from Italian hospitals, in particular Bambino Gesù in Rome and the Gaslini Institute in Genoa, for the care provided to the wounded from Gaza as part of the Operation Chivalrous Knight initiative.

This State Visit marked a new chapter in Italy–UAE relations, consolidating a strategic collaboration for economic growth, innovation and global stability.

Info Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs - United Arab Emirates