ABU DHABI — Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is currently on an official visit to the United Arab Emirates, met on Monday with his Emirati counterpart, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.

During the meeting, they reviewed the prospects of growing cooperation between the two friendly nations across all fronts, especially in the trade, health and economic domains.

Sheikh Abdullah affirmed the depth and strength of relations between the UAE and Pakistan, which, he said, are longstanding and based on mutual trust and respect. He stressed the two nations' determination to grow cooperation across all fields for the common good of both nations' people, the UAE’s state news agency WAM reported.

The two sides discussed the ongoing cooperation between the two countries to stem the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, and ways of accelerating global synergy to address the impact of the disease and ensure the delivery of its vaccine to all countries of the world The two ministers also reviewed the details of Pakistan's participation in the Expo 2020 Dubai, which will open in October this year, with Sheikh Abdullah congratulating Qureshi on the completion of his country's pavilion, wishing his country successful participation in the much-awaited global event.

Earlier in the day, the Pakistani foreign minister held a meeting with the UAE’s Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan.

During the meeting, Sheikh Nahyan welcomed Qureshi and his delegation, and both sides discussed ways to further develop cooperation between the UAE and Pakistan, to serve their mutual interests.

They also exchanged views on a number of issues of mutual concern and discussed the developments to the COVID-19 pandemic and the related precautionary measures implemented by both countries.

They then discussed the UAE’s preparations to host the Expo 2020 Dubai, which will coincide with the country’s Golden Jubilee.

Sheikh Nahyan stressed that the expo will be a new success story for the UAE, as it will encourage international cooperation in protecting the planet and serving humanity.

The UAE, upon the directives of its leadership, is keen to form friendships with all countries and be open to other cultures, he added, stressing that the UAE and Pakistan have solid historic ties that are growing stronger, thanks to the support of their leaderships.

Qureshi affirmed his country’s keenness to enhance its overall cooperation with the UAE to serve their interests while highlighted the UAE’s generous international initiatives that have made it a leading example of helping many communities address the pandemic, most notably the "100 Million Meals" campaign, which embodies the values of solidarity, cooperation, fraternity and peace.

The meeting was attended by Afzaal Mahmood, the ambassador of Pakistan to the UAE, and several officials. — Agencies