An overview of the European Union's (EU) Delegation to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

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1 Tuesday, 10 May, :21 About the EU Delegation to the UAE An overview of the European Union's (EU) Delegation to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). What we do The Role of the EU Delegation: to initiate, promote, support and develop bilateral dialogue and cooperation for the mutual benefit of the EU and the UAE. The EU Delegation: represents the EU in the UAE and/or as instructed by Headquarters; assesses and works towards the development and enhancement of EU-UAE bilateral relations, including in the newer areas/domains of cooperation (e.g. human rights dialogue, development and humanitarian cooperation in third countries, non-proliferation, counter terrorism and antipiracy, etc.); follows up bilateral relations in the areas of policy, security, the economy, trade and external assistance cooperation (financial and technical); follows up EU policies in all sectors; represents the EU in international agencies and organisations present in the UAE (IRENA, Hedayah, CBRN Centre of Excellence); promotes and defends EU values and interests; promotes relations with civil society, human rights advocates and the media in the UAE; undertakes the local presidency functions in the UAE and maintains close contact with the local EU presidency in areas not covered by the Delegation; contributes to coordination with EU country embassies, particularly in the fields of EU competences, notably trade, energy and external assistance; undertakes CFSP démarches as appropriate; reports back to Headquarters on all matters of interest for EU policies; carries out press and public diplomacy activities in pursuit of the above. Ambassador

2 Patrizio Fondi, Head of Delegation Dear Friends, Welcome to the website of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Arab Emirates, I hope you find the information on this website useful for understanding the EU's vision, the Delegation's mission and our special relationship with the UAE. The EU continues to be a work in progress and a remarkable model of regional integration based on mutual political, economic, social and cultural exchange and cooperation. Although the initial form of what we today know as the EU was established to foster economic cooperation between the countries, this purely economic community has evolved tremendously in the course of the past decades, fostering multi-dimensional integration. As a result, it has delivered half a century of peace, stability and prosperity, helped raise living standards, and launched a single European currency. Indeed, it is true that the EU has recently been facing new challenges arising from economic difficulties. However, with our core principles in place, we are confident that not only will we be able to successfully deal with these issues, but these experiences will also lead the EU to grow stronger, more integrated and more united. The relationship between the EU and the UAE has come a long way. Formal relations between the EU and the UAE developed in the framework of the 1988 EU-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Cooperation Agreement, a region to region relationship with the countries of the GCC. Following a decision by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, Catherine Ashton (at the time), the EU opened a Delegation to the United Arab Emirates in The establishment of an EU Delegation in Abu Dhabi is a testimony of the EU's commitment to strengthen its bilateral cooperation with the UAE. The EU Delegation now employs 12 European and local staff, all of whom work towards initiating, promoting, supporting and developing bilateral dialogue and cooperation for the mutual benefit of the EU and the UAE, and, with that as our motto, the opportunities to forge deeper and stronger connections and cooperation are countless. The EU and the UAE can now cooperate more closely in terms of political dialogue, humanitarian cooperation, non-proliferation, counter terrorism, counterpiracy, trade and development.

3 I hope you enjoy surfing our website. I would also like to invite you to follow us on Thank you for your interest Patrizio Fondi Our office Head of Delegation Ambassador Patrizio Fondi Personal Assistant to the Head of Delegation Ms Tiziana Fantuzzi Head of the Political, Press & Information Section Mr Jean-Bernard Bolvin Executive Assistant to the Head of the Political, Press & Information Section Ms Hanadi Abou Al Naaj Minister Counsillor for Digital Diplomacy Mr Peter Diry Head of Administration Ms Stavroula Mitsopoulou Trade Counsellor Dr Taina Sateri OLAF (EU Anti Fraud Office) Liaison Officer

4 Mr Dragos-Lucian Vacarescu Press & Information Officer / Focal Point for Cultural Affairs Ms Yasmine Al-Farra Political Officer Mr Julien De Fraipont Junior Political in Delegation / EU Liaison Officer on Human Rights Defenders Ms Sophie Ramløv Barclay Organizer of the Public Diplomacy Outreach Initiative - 'Sheikh Zayed & Europe: a Journey' Exhibition Ms Rym Tina Ghazal Accountant Ms Nawal Banat Executive Assistant Ms Sumayya M. Ramadan Protocol and Logistics Officer Mr Abdelghani Belghazi Public Relations Officer Mr Najmuddin Abdul Razak Public Relations Officer

5 Mr Bassam Oneisi Source URL: ation-uae_en