Peace takes trust, cooperation and shared responsibility - President Metsola in the United Arab Emirates  

Your Excellency the Speaker,
Your Excellencies, Honourable Members of the Federal National Council,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
 
It is an honour to be with you in amazing Abu Dhabi today. It is important for me to keep my invitation to be here today even at these uncertain times. It is also a great privilege to address the Federal National Council of the United Arab Emirates. I am aware that I am the first President of the European Parliament to appear here. A moment that the institution that I lead is deeply grateful for. It is a milestone in Parliamentary diplomacy and our relations that I mark with humility and a strong sense of responsibility.
 
In our meeting this morning, Your Excellencies made an important point. We are two regions, but in this world, the distinction is becoming less and less. What impacts you, impacts us and vice versa. We need to keep the dialogue going.
 
I am here on behalf of the people of Europe, but being here also means a lot for me, personally. Because if you trace a line straight down the very middle of the Mediterranean from North to the South - and another one from East to West - you’ll find my home right where they meet. Malta. An island at the crossroads of three continents – and our geography is one that shaped our history.
 
It’s a history that you can see in the narrow paths of our cities. One that you can feel carved into the limestone of our buildings. And you can still hear it in our language - Il-Malti - built on Arabic patterns and roots. As-salamu alaykum. In Maltese: Insellimkom. An everyday reminder that our stories have long been intertwined. And that the quest for peace is at the core of our peoples.
 
So allow me to address my gratitude towards the United Arab Emirates - to His Highness the Sheikh, President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to your Excellency Speaker Saqr Ghobash, and to all of you - Honourable Members - for welcoming me into your beautiful country.
 
I bring with me today, representing a Union and a Single Market of 450 million Europeans - a sense of hope and optimism that this moment will mark a new chapter in our relations. A renewed partnership that is anchored in peace, prosperity, and a future-driven partnership. One that finds harmony between tradition and progress - that respects our pasts, but looks firmly to the future.
 
Dear friends,
 
I want to talk today about peace and prosperity, security and trade.  The security landscape is shifting each day. Few times in living memory has the world felt so unpredictable. We see what is happening in Gaza, in Israel and Yemen, in the Red Sea, in Ukraine, and in Iran. Faith has meant that we are the generation of leaders and policy makers who must face a world that feels it is too often on fire. And our shoulders must be broad enough for the scale of the challenges that we take and that we face. About how we can keep our people secure. About how we can find that path to peace and how we can beat extremism. About what we must all do to find ways forward that eluded so many generations before us. About how we stand up for our common humanity. About how we can offer hope, hope to our people and the world that we share. That is the only way to overcome the desperation and helplessness that people feel.
 
The path is not easy but it is the road that we must walk down together. That spirit of courageous decisions that we need to rekindle. That spirit that we saw this great nation become part of our global alliance of 160 Parliaments constructively engaged with diplomatic efforts and humanitarian conscience when Ukraine was attacked.
 
Peace is fragile. It has never been easy. That is true in the Middle East where the situation remains deeply concerning for all of us. The European Union is committed to peace. That is why we will to continue to push for a ceasefire in Gaza and for humanitarian aid to reach those who so desperately need it to end the suffering. We will continue to insist on the return of the hostages and for an end to the terror. And we will continue to do all that while supporting for a two-state solution. Because only by guaranteeing security for Israel, and offering a credible perspective for a legitimate and peaceful Palestinian leadership, can we finally walk down that path towards a sustainable and lasting peace.
 
The signing of the Abraham Accords was a courageous step you took here. It inspired hope. It was future-drive and brave. It meant normalisation. It meant prosperity and it changed the course of history. That is the kind of spirit we need to see more of.
 
Because time and again, history has taught us that when the world feels like it is on fire, it is not enough to contain the flames. We need to extinguish them. Collaboration is what can get us there. And here, the first EU-GCC Summit that we convened last year marked a real and true turning point.
 
Peace cannot be achieved in isolation. It takes trust, cooperation, and shared responsibility. Even when it is difficult - especially when it is difficult. The UAE knows this as well, as does Europe.
 
What we are witnessing between Israel and Iran in recent days, and its potential spill-over effects, is a litmus test for us all. The world understands that Iran must never have a nuclear bomb. That’s a threat to the region, to us all, to the world. Easing tensions and pushing for broad de-escalation here, is essential. We must spare no diplomatic efforts. Our individual and collective roles have never been more important.
 
What the regime in Iran does next, will determine its future. There is a path to peace. Now is the moment for it to be grabbed, and not for the situation to escalate.
 
The same is true for the security threats on our maritime channels. I remember just one day before I was elected President of the European Parliament, the Houthis launched a terrorist attack here on the United Arab Emirates. It was deplorable. And the impact remains. The European Union has condemned the assaults, imposed sanctions and a targeted arms embargo in line with International law, and last year we launched the EUNAVFOR Aspides operation to preserve vital shipping lanes and protect global trade routes.

Because when economic security is threatened by terrorism, when critical supply chains are at risk - that is more than just a regional issue. It is a shared strategic priority.
 
The same logic underpins our approach to strengthening our economic relations. The European Union is the United Arab Emirates’ second largest global trading partner. Our mutual investments amount to 328 billion euros. Europe is consistently the largest source of international tourism to this country. Ours is already a people’s partnership. Stronger bilateral economic investment is what will keep our peoples believing in it.  
 
Europe is open for business. We are making things easier, more streamlined and simplified. Where we went too far, too fast, we will rethink. Launching negotiations on a Strategic Partnership Agreement and a Free Trade Agreement are major steps towards doing that - and they are steps that the European Parliament wholeheartedly welcomes. Our aim here is to create an open, stable, rules-based environment for doing business. That is how we drive innovation, how we create more jobs and ultimately, how we future-proof growth, how we nurture hope.
 
I am a mother of four boys from the very south of Europe. I am not a fan of European politicians moralising to the rest of the world. And I recognise that we might have come across that line on an occasion. This new European Parliament is determined to do better, to find common ground that benefits us all. Because we have so much more that unites us than sets us apart.
 
The UAE is a one that is always looking to the future, unafraid to be more globally engaged. In this regard, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement signed with Ukraine is the first of its kind in the Gulf region. It is historic. And it stands as a powerful example of how solidarity and partnership can unlock opportunities on both sides. That mind-set is one that we fully share, that we have in common.
 
Let’s look at education, for example. Each year, more Emirati students are choosing to study abroad and in Europe. At the same time, your country is rapidly drawing students from across the globe. From the 192,000 Europeans that reside in your country - the highest concentration of EU nationals in any country in the Middle East - 28,000 of them are students. We have a real opportunity on our hands here - to strengthen educational mobility, and to deepen the exchanges of ideas and cultures between our people.
 
After all, meaningful economic cooperation can only get us so far without strong people-to-people ties. And I think that as we go about negotiations, that is something we need to keep in mind.
 
The same spirit extends to our work on bilateral importance. I am grateful to this Council for welcoming three of our Parliamentary delegations in recent months to discuss these developments. This was a meaningful step towards strengthening our relations, and I hope we can continue to build on it.
 
Dear friends, Your Excellencies,
 
I want to conclude today as I started - with a sense of hope and optimism.
 
The EU-UAE partnership has never mattered more. We already have strong foundations and compelling incentives for collaboration. With good will and understanding, I know that we can take it even further.
 
This is the start of a new era. An era of peace, of development, and of progress. The renewal of a true and lasting Emirati and European friendship.
 
Thank you.
Shukran.
Insellmilkom.