Officials and business leaders on Tuesday called for enhanced maritime cooperation between China and the United Arab Emirates, particularly between Shanghai and Dubai, to strengthen cross-industry connectivity under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Running through May 8 in Dubai under the theme "Cooperation and Inclusiveness: Pioneering a New Era in Shipping," the Seatrade Maritime Logistics Middle East, the UAE Maritime Week's flagship conference, would draw over 7,000 maritime professionals. Senior representatives from DP World GCC, CCS UAE, SIPG, IEC Telecom Group and UAE BluePass are participating in the event.

Yu Fulin, director general of Shanghai Municipal Transportation Committee, emphasized the growing partnership between Shanghai and Dubai. "Though geographically distant at opposite ends of Eurasia, the two cities are closely linked by our shared commitment to openness, inclusiveness, and excellence. Recent years have seen remarkable progress in our bilateral trade and economic collaboration," he said.

Citing government figures, he noted China's direct investment in the emirate surged to $3.42 billion in 2024 — a 200 percent year-on-year increase — with project numbers growing from 37 to 60.

Yu also referenced February's strategic cooperation agreement between Shanghai and Abu Dhabi to establish friendly exchange relations, which aims to expand collaboration across trade, investment, finance and technological innovation.

"Faced with profound changes unseen in a century and new topics such as the dual transformation of both green transition and digital revolution, Shanghai and Dubai must collaborate more closely, seize opportunities with a forward-looking perspective, respond to challenges through joint efforts, and seek common development through shared wisdom," he said.

The event also coincides with the fifth anniversary of the North Bund Forum, a key annual gathering of the international shipping industry.

Chinese Ambassador to the UAE Zhang Yiming highlighted the two nations' comprehensive strategic partnership, saying under the Belt and Road Initiative, the two countries have achieved fruitful results in shipping, ports, logistics and shipbuilding.

"China and the UAE are comprehensive strategic partners. As two pivotal hubs of global trade, China and the UAE have always centered their collaboration on connectivity."

He cited COSCO SHIPPING Ports' Abu Dhabi Terminal as a flagship project, with throughput reaching 1.845 million TEUs in 2024 — a 36 percent year-on-year increase — following its 2018 opening.

"In 2024, bilateral trade between China and the UAE exceeded $100 billion, with over 90 percent of goods transported by sea. More than 60 percent of China's exports to Gulf countries pass through UAE ports, serving as the best testament to our cooperation," the ambassador added.

Zhang extended an invitation to attend this year's North Bund Forum, describing it as a bridge for policy coordination, economic collaboration, technology exchange and people-to-people bonds.

Shahab Al Jassmi, senior vice-president of commercial ports and terminals at DP World GCC, said cooperation is key to overcome different types of challenges and barriers to the trade and supply chains. He added that the DP World achieved a milestone in 2024, handling over 1.3 million vehicles across its Dubai terminals, and China has emerged as the top trading partner, contributing nearly 25 percent of total vehicle volumes.

"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together," he said. "We need to work hand in hand to share these practices, allied on sustainability, goals and harness new technology."

The UAE Maritime Week, organized under the patronage of the Ministry of Energy & Infrastructure, features Seatrade Maritime Logistics Middle East as its anchor event during the week-long programming.

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