New Delhi: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday acknowledged the praise from India for joining the BRICS group on January 1, this year.

The development came on the day India and the UAE released a joint statement over Saudi President Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan's official visit to the country to attend the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit in Ahmedabad.

The UAE also reaffirmed its commitment to working closely with India and other member states and realising the shared objectives of BRICS.

"Both sides committed to continue working together within BRICS and other international and multilateral fora to deliver significant outcomes. The UAE stressed that becoming a member of an extended BRICS grouping reflects the country's keenness to champion the value of multilateralism in supporting peace, and development for the benefit and wellbeing of peoples and nations across the world," the joint statement read.

The BRICS group includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

On January 1, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates officially joined the bloc.

The UAE President is visiting India at the invitation of PM Modi to the ongoing 10th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024 as the chief guest.

During the visit, both leaders held constructive talks, reaffirming the strength of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and close ties between their countries and their commitment to continue collaborating to reinforce the longstanding and robust strategic partnership.

The two leaders also discussed the significant global roles of India and the UAE in 2023, including India's Presidency of the G20, and the UAE's Presidency of COP28. The UAE commended the endeavours by the Indian Presidency, describing it as the most ambitious in the history of the G20 and the efforts of both sides to maximize synergies between the G20 process and COP28 over the course of 2023.

The UAE side also expressed its appreciation to India for inviting the UAE as a Guest Country and the Indian side praised the UAE's key participation in the summit. The UAE's involvement in the event was a clear sign of the country's steadfast commitment to multilateral cooperation and international priorities on global issues.

Additionally, India congratulated the UAE for successfully hosting COP28, for adopting the action agenda at the early stages of the conference, and for achieving an exceptional accomplishment concluding with "The UAE Consensus", a historic agreement by 198 Parties to usher in a new era of climate action.

The Indian side also thanked the UAE for the special honour accorded to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to speak at the ceremonial opening of the World Climate Action Summit Plenary in Dubai. The UAE expressed appreciation to India for its support and contribution towards the success of COP28, said the release.

Both the leaders also reviewed the India-UAE relationship, which was formally elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the visit of the UAE President to India in 2017 and expressed satisfaction on the progress achieved in various sectors and noted that the India-UAE partnership has been significantly growing and expanding over the years.

The leaders also exchanged number of MoUs, including Memorandum of Understanding on Investment Cooperation in Innovative Healthcare Projects, MoU on Investment Cooperation in the Renewable Energy Sector, MoU on Investment Cooperation in Food Park Development and MoU between DP World and the Government of Gujarat

Recognising the importance of food security, Prime Minister Modi and President Al Nahyan emphasized that the India-UAE Food Park project will promote the reliability and resilience of food supply chains and expand food and agriculture trade between the UAE and India. Both nations share an intent to implement this project, among others, in India, which will unlock further value for both nations and the region in food security.

The two leaders recognised the importance of the Memorandum of Understanding on Investment Cooperation in the Renewable Energy Sector, which focuses on forging effective collaboration in renewable energy, with the aspiration to implement energy projects.

The two leaders also reviewed the efforts from both sides to strengthen the strong economic and commercial cooperation and explore new areas of collaboration. They noted that the UAE is the fourth largest investor in India in 2022-23, compared to ranking seventh in 2021-22. They welcomed the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)'s progress in establishing a presence in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), a financial free zone in Gujarat. The leaders underlined that these measures will further facilitate the flow of bilateral investments.

They welcomed the strong growth in India-UAE trade since the entry into force of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on May 1, 2022.

The UAE is India's third-largest trading partner for the year and its second-largest export destination. India is also the UAE's second largest trading partner.

"With the bilateral trade rising to USD 85 billion in 2022-23, the leaders expressed optimism that the target of non-oil trade to 100 billion USD can be achieved, well ahead of the target year 2030.They also noted that the MoU between DP World and the Government of Gujarat for Special Economic Zone (SEZ) development, ports and related infrastructure signed today would further boost bilateral trade between the two countries," the joint statement added.

Underscoring the importance of ensuring a stable and resilient multilateral trading system in fostering global economic prosperity, the two leaders stressed the importance of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference, taking place in Abu Dhabi in February 2024, to achieve a successful outcome that serves the interests of all WTO Members and strengthens the rules-based trade order.

The two leaders also resolved to further enhance the bilateral partnership in the energy field, across oil, gas, and renewable energy. Both sides will advance their cooperation in Green Hydrogen, solar energy and grid connectivity.

The two countries further agreed to increase investment across the energy spectrum, including in India's Strategic Petroleum Reserve Program.