UAE minister says trade talks with EU not a hurdle for deal between GCC and bloc

The United Arab Emirates does not see bilateral talks for a free trade deal with the European Union as an obstacle to a similar agreement between the 27-nation bloc and the Gulf Cooperation Council, the UAE's trade minister said on Wednesday.

"We're not seeing this as a hurdle, we are seeing it's a flow which is going to be starting from here and moving to the GCC...usually the blocs are much slower than the bilateral, and that's why we're starting here, so we can move quickly," Thani Al Zeyoudi told reporters.

He said the UAE was keen to conclude a bilateral deal with the EU "in a very short period, three to six months from now."

He was speaking in Dubai beside the EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic as the EU and the UAE officially launched talks.

The UAE, an influential, oil-rich Middle East state, has long advocated deeper EU involvement in the Gulf region, with the GCC the EU's sixth-biggest export market.

Since 2021, the UAE has initiated a raft of bilateral trade, investment and cooperation deals - called Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements - to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and bolster long-term growth prospects.

The EU and the GCC started trade talks 35 years ago but talks were formally suspended in 2008.

Zeyoudi said bilateral talks that the UAE held with New Zealand and South Korea in the past had led to trade agreements with the GCC.

He said the UAE also had the opportunity to start bilateral talks with the UK and that China had also approached the Gulf country for bilateral discussions, but said UAE would prioritise GCC talks.