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Dubai: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is visiting Germany from today to promote relations between the two countries.
Shaikh Mohammad's visit follows Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to the UAE in February last year, sustaining the regular meetings among the top officials of the two countries.
"The visit to Germany of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum - the first as Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai - is another important milestone in our relations. It will further strengthen the strategic partnership between our two countries, which was signed in 2004 in Berlin. Since then we have witnessed an increase in all fields of our bilateral relations," said Klaus-Peter Brandes, German Ambassador to the UAE, in a statement to Gulf News.
The statement continued: "Following the visit of Federal Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel to the UAE in February last year, the current visit of Shaikh Mohammad to Germany continues the exchange of meetings at the highest political level. It underlines the deep friendship between our two countries and at the same time gives new momentum for even closer cooperation in the future."
Partner
The UAE has been an important Gulf trading partner of Germany, especially after the two countries signed a strategic partnership agreement in Berlin in April 2004 which ushered in intensified economic relations and cooperation.
Germany's trade with the UAE has been particularly strong in Dubai.
According to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, there are 511 German companies registered with the Dubai Chamber, 60 of which are 100 per cent owned by German businessmen.
Dubai's non-oil trade with Germany, on the other hand, reached nearly Dh24 billion in 2006, with imports accounting for more than Dh21 billion, and exports and re-exports exceeding Dh2.6 billion.
Germany was among Dubai's top six trading partners in 2006 with a total of 1,135 Certificates of Origin issued by the Dubai Chamber for German goods with a total value of Dh564,539,294 between January and December 2007.
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