The European Union Delegation to the United Arab Emirates hosted a diplomatic reception on Thursday evening in Abu Dhabi to celebrate ‘Europe Day’, with UAE partners, government officials, key figures and members of the diplomatic community and international organisations.

The event was attended by His Excellency Abdulrahman Alneyadi, Director of European Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Her Excellency Lucie Berger, European Union Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates; and Ambassadors of EU member states and other countries.

This year’s celebration also marked the 10^th anniversary since the establishment of the European Union Delegation in the UAE. It was the second EU delegation to open in the GCC region, signifying the importance of UAE as a strategic partner for the EU in the region.

Her Excellency Lucie Berger, EU Ambassador to the UAE, commended the longstanding relations and many milestones achieved by the EU and UAE over the past decade. She said: “We have come a long way over the past 10 years. The UAE is the EU’s largest export destination and investment partner in the MENA region today. We have a visa waiver in place since 2015, and almost 150,000 citizens of EU Member States now call the UAE their ‘home’.

“I started my tenure as Ambassador to the UAE in September last year, and in the past nine months alone, I have witnessed some remarkable developments both in the UAE and in our bilateral relations.”

The event was attended by over 250 guests who enjoyed a beautiful musical performance presented by Slovenian soprano Tajda Jovanovič, accompanied by Italian pianist Aldo Dotto, the General Manager of the International Music Institute in Abu Dhabi.

Europe Day is celebrated the 9^th of May every year by all EU institutions and EU Member States as well as globally by over 140 EU Delegations around the world.