Istanbul:On behalf of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Foreign Trade, and Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Republic of Türkiye, participated in the 42nd session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC), held in Istanbul from October 31 to November 3, 2026.
According to Wam, the ministerial-level meeting was inaugurated by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Türkiye, and brought together leaders, senior officials, and representatives from OIC member states. Al Zeyoudi conveyed greetings from President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to President Erdogan and the leaders and representatives of OIC member states, along with wishes for continued progress and prosperity.
In his address, Al Zeyoudi emphasized the UAE's commitment to elevating economic, trade, and investment cooperation with OIC member states into strategic partnerships that foster integration and support shared prosperity. He highlighted the OIC's potential to deepen intra-organization trade and noted that the UAE's non-oil foreign trade with OIC member states reached approximately $358.1 billion in 2025. This accounted for 35 percent of its total non-oil foreign trade.
Al Zeyoudi also underscored the importance of trade finance instruments, strengthening trade and investment cooperation, and the need for flexible mechanisms to keep pace with global change. He affirmed the UAE's readiness to share its experience in concluding Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements with member states.
Sultan Al Mansoori expressed gratitude to the Republic of Türkiye for hosting the session and highlighted the UAE's focus on strengthening economic cooperation with OIC member states, recognizing the importance of promoting trade and facilitating the movement of goods, services, and investments to advance economic integration.