UAE and China sign agreement to boost air connectivity

Broader civil aviation sector co-operation will further strengthen trade and investment ties between the two countries

China is the UAE’s leading trade partner with non-oil bilateral trade worth Dh264.2 billion ($72 billion) in 2022. Pawan Singh / The National

The UAE and China, the world’s second-largest economy, signed a preliminary agreement to increase air connectivity between the two countries, which will help deepen their bilateral economic ties.

The latest announcement follows air services consultations between the UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority of China in Beijing last week, the GCAA said in a statement on Sunday.

The two regulators have also agreed to boost co-operation in the broader civil aviation sector and explore initiatives as China seeks to boost its trade and investment ties with the Arab World's second-largest economy.

In June, Etihad Airways signed a joint venture agreement with China Eastern Airlines, a move aimed at growing their routes between the two countries.

The agreement, signed in Abu Dhabi, is the first such commercial alliance between a Middle Eastern and Chinese airline and will create a stronger combined network, Etihad said at the time.

In terms of trade, the UAE is China's largest trading partner in the Arab world, with trade and investment spanning many sectors, including crude oil, petrochemicals and artificial intelligence. China is the UAE’s leading trade partner with non-oil bilateral trade worth Dh264.2 billion ($72 billion) in 2022.

Chinese investments in the UAE increased by more than 16 per cent annually last year to $1.3 billion, Zhang Yimeng, China’s ambassador to the UAE, said earlier this year.

The UAE boosted its investments in China by 120 per cent last year, accounting for “90 per cent of Arab countries' investments in China”, the ambassador said at an Abu Dhabi event at the time.

The two countries also signed agreements to boost co-operation in investments, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), industry and technology, and tourism during President Sheikh Mohamed's visit to Beijing in May.