Abu Dhabi Crown Prince visits Serbia for trilateral talks

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed meets Serbian President and Hungarian Prime Minister in Belgrade

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, walks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, centre-right, and Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban, left, at the Belgrade Waterfront. All photos: Abu Dhabi Media Office

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mr Vucic and Mr Orban are briefed on the Belgrade Waterfront project

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, meets Mr Vucic and Mr Orban

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, begins his official visit to Serbia

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, was welcomed to Serbia by Mr Vucic

A meeting during the official visit of Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, to Serbia

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, arrives in Belgrade to be greeted by Mr Vucic

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, arrived in Belgrade to be met by Mr Vucic and a guard of honour

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, will use the official visit to discuss opportunities to strengthen ties between the two countries

The visit comes at a time of burgeoning relations between the two countries

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, held trilateral talks in Belgrade on Friday with Aleksandar Vucic, President of Serbia, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Sheikh Khaled expressed his pleasure in attending the tripartite meeting and thanked Mr Vucic for his invitation to discuss ways to further strengthen relations between the UAE, Serbia and Hungary, state news agency Wam reported.

The Crown Prince also highlighted the importance of such meetings in creating opportunities to develop economic partnerships and investment projects between the three nations.

He reaffirmed the UAE’s commitment to collaborating with all nations with the aim of serving mutual interests, and of benefiting the region and world.

The delegation toured the Belgrade Waterfront and were briefed on key features of the mixed-use development and its buildings, such as the Belgrade Tower, which are enhancing the cityscape and supporting urban regeneration.

Sheikh Khaled is being accompanied by Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Co-operation, Ahmed Jasem Al Zaabi, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, and Mohamed Alabbar, chairman of Eagle Hills Properties, and several government officials.

The visit comes at a time of growing relations between the two countries.

This month, the UAE and Serbia launched negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) to boost bilateral and investment flows.

The first rounds of talks between senior officials took place in Dubai.

In the first half 2023, bilateral non-oil trade reached $57.6 million, surpassing the total recorded for the whole of 2020, the Ministry of Economy said at the time.

The UAE is now the third-largest market for Serbian exports in the Middle East, with foreign direct investment focused on sectors such as agriculture, food security, real estate, infrastructure and logistics.

“Serbia is an emerging economy in an increasingly important part of Europe, with strategic links to many vital markets in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, while the UAE can serve as Serbia's gateway to markets in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, said Thani Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, at the time.

“The Cepa will not only improve access to these global supply chains but enable our private sectors to build long-term partnerships and explore new investment opportunities.”