The Media Line: UAE, EU Strategic Deal Talks Seek To Expand Trade, Technology, And Security Links  

UAE, EU Strategic Deal Talks Seek To Expand Trade, Technology, And Security Links  

By The Media Line Staff  

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the European Union (EU) have begun formal talks in Abu Dhabi on a strategic partnership agreement that aims to deepen cooperation on trade, technology, and security while providing a broad political framework for their relationship, officials told UAE’s WAM news agency on Thursday. The move follows earlier steps toward a separate free trade deal and is intended to advance shared goals on regional stability, economic diversification, and digital transformation.  

State minister in the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, and EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica announced the start of negotiations at a joint press conference at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abu Dhabi. The Strategic Partnership Agreement is designed to sit alongside ongoing talks on a bilateral free trade agreement, which began in late May and would be the EU’s first comprehensive trade deal with a Gulf state.  

According to a joint statement, the proposed pact would formalize cooperation in sectors such as trade, investment, energy, green and digital transition, artificial intelligence, connectivity, research, and security. The agreement is also expected to cover humanitarian assistance and people-to-people exchanges, reflecting the UAE’s efforts to position itself as a global logistics and aid hub linking Europe with the Middle East, Asia, and Africa.  

The EU is already one of the UAE’s largest trade and investment partners, with annual cross-border investment estimated in the hundreds of billions of euros.