On December 20, 2023, Dubai time, the founding ceremony of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in the UAE was held in the conference hall of Address Sky View Hotel in Dubai after the successful holding of the 10th Anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Greater Bay Area Gulf Economic Cooperation Forum. His Excellency Zhang Yiming, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to the UAE, His Excellency Sani Zayoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the UAE, Dr. Cai Guoshen, Standing Committee Member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, President of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, and Chairman of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Entrepreneurs Alliance, Dr. Han Fangming, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Chahar Society, His Excellency Li Xuhang, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Dubai, and Deputy Consul General Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Chinese Embassy in the UAE Jin Demin, Director of the Consular Affairs Department of the Chinese Consulate General in Dubai He Chao, heads of Chinese-funded enterprises and institutions, representatives of overseas Chinese communities, heads and representatives of chambers of commerce in the UAE from the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Kazakhstan, India and other countries, media representatives and friendly people from the political and business circles of the UAE attended the event. Nearly 400 people attended the event. The Axi Moon Dance Art Troupe from Mile City, Yunnan Province, performed a wonderful program with Mile ethnic style for the guests.

His Excellency Zhang Yiming, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to the UAE, His Excellency Sani Al Zayoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the UAE, Dr. Jonathan Choi, Member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, President of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, and Chairman of the Entrepreneurs Alliance of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Dr. Han Fangming, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Chahar Society, His Excellency Li Xuhang, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Dubai, and Mr. Tang Zhengang, the first President of the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, jointly unveiled the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee of the National People’s Congress, the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the Central Committee of the China Zhi Gong Party, the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, the China Overseas Friendship Association, on behalf of the State Council Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, the Chinese embassy and consulate in the UAE, and the overseas Chinese affairs authorities of Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Fujian, Henan, Shanxi, Jiangxi, Yunnan and other provinces and cities, the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce, the Thai Chinese Chamber of Commerce and government agencies, community organizations and local overseas Chinese groups in the UAE from more than 100 countries and regions around the world sent a total of more than 400 congratulatory telegrams, letters and letters to the celebration meeting.

His Excellency Zhang Yiming, Chinese Ambassador to the UAE, congratulated Tang Zhengang on his appointment as the first president of the Arab Chinese Chamber of Commerce, emphasizing that the establishment of the Arab Chinese Chamber of Commerce is in line with the historical trend and in line with the aspirations of the overseas Chinese. He hoped that the Arab Chinese Chamber of Commerce and the overseas Chinese community in the UAE would achieve new developments in promoting unity, development and expanding influence, better serve the construction of the “Belt and Road” and the “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area”, strive to successfully apply for the World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention as soon as possible, and contribute to promoting the quality upgrade of the overseas Chinese community in the UAE, promoting China-UAE economic and trade cooperation and the level of bilateral relations.

His Excellency Sani Zayoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the UAE, said in his speech that the UAE cherishes its relations with China very much. The two sides have great potential for development in the economic and trade fields. China has been the UAE’s largest trading partner for many years, and the UAE is China’s second largest trading partner, largest export market and largest investment destination in the Arab region. In recent years, the UAE’s re-export business has achieved significant growth, and the UAE has become the main trade gateway for Chinese goods to enter the Middle East and African markets. It is hoped that the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry will play an active role in promoting trade and industrial projects between China and the UAE in the future.

Dr. Cai Guoshen, member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, delivered a speech on behalf of the convener and secretariat of the World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention as the guest of honor. Dr. Cai Guoshen extended his heartfelt congratulations to all members of the Board of Directors of the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and sent a message to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry to make further progress. He said that after more than 30 years of hard work, the Chinese in the UAE have already had a certain strength and social foundation in Dubai. In addition to uniting and uniting the local Chinese, the establishment of the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry will also bring the UAE and Chinese businessmen around the world closer together, and actively play the role of a bridge connecting Chinese businessmen around the world.

Khalid Shah, Deputy Director of the UAE Embassy in China, pointed out in his speech that the establishment of the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry is another strong proof of the major leap forward in economic and cultural cooperation between the UAE and China. It marks that the two countries and their business communities will move towards a bright and prosperous future together, and also represents the commitment of both sides to common development and success. The UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry will become a bridge to bring the vibrant business partnership between China and the UAE closer together, promote cooperation and achieve win-win results.

His Excellency Zhang Yiming, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to the UAE, and His Excellency Li Xuhang, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Dubai, presented the certificate and seal to President Tang Zhengang.

Chairman Tang Zhenggang presented the Honorary Chairman Certificate on site to Dr. Han Fangming, Vice Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Chahar Society, Zheng Chao, Chairman of the UAE Global 2031 Strategic Partners, Ma Xu, Chairman of the UAE Tomorrow World Group, and Wen Wei, Chairman of TuanChe.com and CoolCar, and presented the Honorary Chairman Certificate offline to Sun Jiansheng, Chairman of Dubai Wenchao Group.

President Tang Zhengang presented honorary president certificates to Xu Xiaoping, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of the Federation of Overseas Chinese in the UAE, Chen Zhiyuan, President of the Federation of Zhejiang Overseas Chinese Associations in the UAE, Wei Deyuan, Director of Beijing Tongrentang Gulf Company, and Chen Zhixiang, President of the UAE China Peaceful Reunification Promotion Association.

Chairman Tang Zhengang, Dr. Chai Shaojin, Professor of International Relations at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of Sharjah University, UAE; Ma Youbin, CEO of Tianyu Legal Translation Agency and Commissioner of China-UAE Judicial Cooperation; Li Dongxia, Chief Director of the UAE Overseas Chinese Charity Spring Festival Gala and Co-Chairman of the Global Overseas Chinese Calligraphers Association; Urdan, Chairman of UAE U-S Group; Liu Zhende, Off-campus Supervisor of Master’s Students at the School of Foreign Languages of Northwest Minzu University and Honorary President of Taizhou Chamber of Commerce of UAE; Zhang Jianzhong, Executive Chairman of the UAE China Peaceful Reunification Promotion Association; and Tang Ruigang, Chairman of Jiangsu Jiangyin Dadi Equipment Group, presented the consultant appointment letter on the spot. Zhou Ling, the first Chinese registered legal translator of the UAE Ministry of Justice, a member of the Arabic Branch of the Foreign Language Teaching Steering Committee of the Ministry of Education of China, a distinguished professor and master’s tutor of Zhejiang Gongshang University, was presented with the consultant appointment letter offline.

President Tang Zhengang presented certificates on the spot to Executive Presidents Wang Huimin, Su Gending, Wu Qingwei, Yu Shili, Song Hong, Zhang Bingyang, Zhang Junyi, Chen Zhongqi, Luo Feng, Jin Jiayi and Shi Wenzhao.

Chairman Tang Zhengang led the Executive Committee and heads of various functional departments to the stage for a collective inaugural speech. We sincerely thank the Chinese Embassy and Consulate in Afghanistan for their guidance in the establishment of the China-Afghanistan Association, thank all the leaders and guests who support the development of the China-Afghanistan Association, and thank all members of the China-Afghanistan Association for their trust. The Executive Committee and heads of various functional departments will uphold the spirit of integrity, unity, innovation and dedication, gather the wisdom of overseas Chinese businessmen, build new platforms, explore new opportunities, open up new situations, enhance the influence of Chinese businessmen in Afghanistan, and promote the long-term and stable development of friendship between China and Afghanistan.

Supervisory Board Chairman Bu Yanfang and Executive President Song Hong presented certificates of executive vice president to Yu Jingjing, Wan Daoming, Wang Leyong, Zhang Lisheng, Chen Gu, Zhou Zhiyi, Zhou Tongtong, Pang Xueyu and Dai Jiefeng on site, and presented certificates of executive vice president to Li Feng, Zhu Mingtao and Yu Yinong offline.

Supervisory Board Chairman Bu Yanfang and Executive President Song Hong presented certificates of executive vice president to Zheng Kai, Zheng Jian, Zhao Fang, Hu Huanying, Hu Dongsheng, Jia Huaiyuan, Xu Feizhen, Liang Wusong, Xie Qiyi, Lin Jingxia (represented by Wu Qingwei) and Xu Guohua on the spot.

Executive presidents Wu Qingwei and Yu Shili presented vice president certificates to Song Jiguang, Qiu Yalin, Zhu Junting, Liu Jirong, Qi Hongli, Sun Yingna, Zhu Chaoying, Li Na, Li Sen, Yang Zhe and Xie Weizhong on the spot.

Executive presidents Wu Qingwei and Yu Shili presented vice president certificates to Xu Haibo, Xiao Qing, Chen Jiawei, Chen Yanqun, Jin Qi, Feng Ping, Duan Weimin, Huang Dongrong, Bao Changfeng, Cai Can, Xiong Lijun, Chen Lin and Zhao Jianhua on the spot.

Executive Presidents Wu Qingwei and Yu Shili presented Vice President certificates to Xu Hong, Chuang Jiahui, Xu Jingen, Zhang Siyu, Wang Xiaohong, Zhang Yang, Liu Xueling, Yao Bing, Wang Xu, and Yang Lei on site, and offline to Zhu Xiaoping, Tang Sha, Yang Tianming, Li Jiafei, Huang Baoyin, Wang Ye, Lin Fangfa, Liu Wei, and Zhang Shourong. The newly established advisory group of the A-Z General Association was also announced on site (the following rankings are in no particular order, in the order of strokes of the surnames): Ma Hui, Wang Liliang, Li Songtao, Qu Yan, Zhang Xuming, Yan Ting, Abulaiti, Chen Linghui, Fan Yewei, Fu Yongmei, and Pan Shangxu.

The A-Zhong General Association specially invited the Axi Moon Dance Art Troupe of Mile City, Yunnan to bring 12 programs with Mile ethnic style, such as “Axi Moon Dance”, “Azhe Azhe”, and “Black Yi Charm”, to the guests, with a total length of about 1 hour. The artists showed the unique charm of Mile City’s Axi Moon Dance, a national intangible cultural heritage, to the guests and presented a wonderful feast of song and dance. This is the first time that Axi Moon Dance has entered a Middle Eastern country for performance. It is a powerful measure for the A-Zhong General Association and Mile City to promote the protection and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage and strengthen the “going out” of culture. It has played a positive role in promoting the excellent traditional Chinese culture and promoting cultural exchanges between the two places and even the two countries.

Ambassador Zhang Yiming also gave full affirmation to the performance. He said that “Axi Moon Dance” is a national intangible cultural heritage, and Maitreya’s invitation to participate in this celebration performance is a powerful measure to implement the requirements of President Xi Jinping. He hopes that more excellent Chinese traditional culture will enter the UAE and carry out cultural exchanges.