"I look forward to working with the UAE leaders to draw up a blueprint for China-UAE cooperation so as to unlock its full potentials and advance China-UAE relations at a higher level and speed," he wrote.
The article, circulated Friday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, appeared in major UAE newspapers in anticipation of Xi’s visit to Abu Dhabi, his first UAE trip in almost 30 years.
Xi praised the 34-year history of friendship and people-to-people exchanges between the two nations that made them "bosom friends" and key partners in regional and international affairs.
The UAE trip at the invitation of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan was the first stop of Xi’s overseas tour this year. He will continue to Senegal, Rwanda and South Africa, the host of this year’s BRICS summit of major emerging economies.
The UAE officials thanked Xi for picking their country as his first destination and expressed hope that his "historic visit" would give impetus to strategic relations between the two countries.
