ABU DHABI, 11th January, 2023 (WAM) --As part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen means of commercial and economic cooperation with various countries of the world, the UAE, represented by the Ministry of Finance, held the first Financial Dialogue with the Ministry of Finance of Israel.

The dialogue session was held virtually and sought to boost cooperation ties and encourage innovation in the field of financial services between the two countries.

Younis Haji Al Khoori, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, headed the UAE delegation, while the Israeli side was led by Shira Greenberg, Chief Economist, Director of state Revenue, Research, and International Affairs, Ministry of Finance. The delegations included senior officials from both parties.

In his opening speech, Younis Haji Al Khoori welcomed all the participants, stressing the importance of this platform, which is a testament to the strength of the relationship between both countries, and provides excellent opportunities to exchange policies, regulations, and business priorities, while also exploring new avenues for bilateral cooperation. He lauded the significant progress achieved between both ministries since the historic Abraham Accords Peace Agreement, which was demonstrated in the agreements and a memorandum of understanding including the Bilateral Investment Treaty signed in October 2020, and the Double Taxation Agreements signed in May 2021.

He also mentioned that the recently signed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the UAE and Israel will further solidify the bilateral relations between both countries and create new opportunities to develop priority sectors such as agri-tech, renewable energy, and advanced technology.

Al Khoori noted that "in the UAE, and in-line with the global development agenda, we are actively exploring avenues to promote sustainable finance, which is an important strategic objective for the UAE as we seek to integrate global efforts within this area as part of our preparation for hosting COP28 this year".

He said, "The topics we discussed today is of great importance to both of our countries, given our shared positions as regional investment hubs and our aligned strategic objectives of encouraging innovation in our countries. The UAE-Israel Financial Dialogue brings together the ministries of finance and central banks, as we believe it is important to keep an open dialogue between both countries to discuss issues that impact our financial systems and potential areas of bilateral and regional cooperation."

Al Khoori concluded that the UAE will continue to be a regional leader in economic reforms, international trade, political stability, and peacemaking to achieve economic opportunities for future generations to come.

The dialogue session discussed a number of issues related to macroeconomic trends and policies, means of cyber-financial cooperation, and opportunities and potentials for bilateral cooperation between the two countries at the regional and global levels, such as the World Bank and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).