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Berlin: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, wound up a two-day state visit to Germany opening new horizons of cooperation and partnership between the two countries.
On his first state-level visit to Germany that came in response to an invitation by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Shaikh Mohammad led a high-ranking delegation and held talks with Merkel and other senior government officials in the country.
The economic team accompanying Shaikh Mohammad also held several meetings with their counterparts in Germany, thus opening doors for greater cooperation and partnership in the fields of trade and economy.
On a joint press conference held in Berlin on Thursday along with Merkel, Shaikh Mohammad spelt out his views on a number of regional and global issues of prime importance, and called for a peaceful solution of the Iranian nuclear impasse.
Shaikh Mohammad reiterated UAE's stance on establishing a Palestinian state and urged the international community to extend support for achieving peace and development in Lebanon, Iraq and Afghan-istan.
The UAE Vice-President and his delegation also visited the UAE embassy, where they were received and welcomed by the UAE's Ambassador to Germany Mohammad Ahmad Al Mahmoud and other embassy officials.
Shaikh Mohammad commended the work of the envoy and diplomats and urged them to exert utmost efforts to keep the UAE's reputation high.
The UAE Vice-President concluded his tour with a visit to the Free University of Berlin, where he was welcomed by former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.
Schroeder is also chairman of the Arab-German Friendship Association, and chancellor of the university.
The university presented a golden medal to Shaikh Mohammad in recognition of his efforts to develop knowledge, education and humanitarian work in and outside the Arab and Islamic worlds.
Making an impact
After receiving the golden medal, Shaikh Mohammad thanked the university and chancellor for the award. He told the audience about the challenges which began early with his ancestors from Baniyas tribe, facing tough challenges, while looking for water to quench their thirst, and for grazing to their cattle. "It was a great challenge due to severity of the desert and lack of the natural resources," Shaikh Mohammad said.
But he noted that the UAE people did not succumb to those challenges as they eventually accomplished huge achievements in the UAE, particularly Jebel Ali port, the biggest in the region, and Emirates Airline, development nationwide and construction of cities whether locally or worldwide with the UAE talent and management.
Referring to western democracy, Shaikh Mohammad stated that the UAE has its own "Majlis" democracy, which brings people closer to the ruler through consultations and exchanges of views without barriers of protocol.
Impressed by his speech, the audience gave the UAE leader a standing ovation.
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