Raja Easa Al-Gurg meets a delegation from the European Parliament

The delegation included seven members of the European Parliament headed by Ms Lilli Gruber (Italy), Tobias Pflüger (Germany), Sajjad Karim (British, of Pakistani origin), John Attard-Montalto (Malta), Patrick Louis (France), Roberta Alma Anastase (Romania) and Eugen Mihasescu (Romania).The meeting took place at Emirates Towers.

During a luncheon hosted by DBWC, Mrs. Raja Easa Al-Gurg welcomed the visiting delegation, stressing the importance of such meetings, that bring views and awareness of common interests and activate agreements between all parties. She pointed out that relations between the United Arab Emirates and the European Union are witnessing a remarkable development, fuelled by a growing trend in the trade exchange volume between the two sides.

The DBWC president reviewed the achievements of the Emirati woman at the political, economical and social levels, for the benefit of the visiting delegation. She said the achievements were the result of the interest and support of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE (May God Preserve Him) and his brother, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai (May God Preserve Him) and the Rulers of the Emirates. She said the leaders insisted on giving women their full rights to enable them to play an important role in the development of Emirati society.

Tobias Pflüger, Vice-Chairman of the European Parliament Gulf Delegation that visited Dubai (May 29 - 31), and also a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, in a statement on behalf of President Lilli Gruber of the European Parliament Gulf Delegation said he was very impressed with diversity of the local and foreign members who constitute the Dubai Business Women Council (DBWC). He said that the luncheon hosted by the DBWC was a useful forum for "very realistic communications".

Mr. Pflüger had intensive discussions with DBWC members on trade unions as alternatives advocacy bodies due to the inadequate living conditions of construction workers that are not within the international benchmarks set by organizations like the Human Rights Watch. He said he was most impressed by the members' acknowledgement of the gravity of the situation and their emphasis that steps were being taken to rectify it.

The meeting reviewed the growth prospects witnessed by the strong distinguished relations between the United Arab Emirates and the European Union in all areas. Discussions were also held on ways of strengthening these relations through positive contributions from the two sides within the framework of joint cooperation, especially in view of the availability of opportunities and means of support and backing provided to investors to redouble their efforts in upgrading the size of investment partnerships and increasing trade exchange rates between them.

Mrs. Raja Easa Al-Gurg stressed the need to remove obstacles facing the flow of goods and commodities between the Arab Gulf states and the European Union countries, so that the trade exchange volume could rise to greater levels. She also stressed the need to establish solid economic partnerships between the parties to take advantage of investment opportunities available to both sides.

EU delegations play a key role in shaping EU-third country relations. They regularly monitor, discuss, and visit the countries they represent, following which they write a report on their visit which is taken up by a Committee (e.g. Foreign Affairs/Human Rights) for discussion in Plenary by the rest of the European Parliament.