By Staff Reporter
BRUSSELS, Abdulla Ahmed Balalaa, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability, concluded a two-day trip, from the 6-7 March, to the European Union (EU) in Brussels, where he met with senior officials and stakeholders in the energy and water sectors.
During the meetings, Abdulla Balalaa reaffirmed the UAE’s close partnership with the EU, focusing on aligning efforts, cooperation and achieving progress in the fields of renewable energy, energy efficiency and water resilience.
Balalaa’s visit followed the 2026 United Nations Water Conference (UNWC26) Organisational Session in New York and coincides with EU Ocean Days in Brussels. During the visit, he was invited to take part in the EU’s consultative process on reviewing the EU’s water resilience strategy.
At the consultative process, Balalaa highlighted the launch of the 2026 UNWC process, outlined the UAE’s priorities for the conference and invited the international community to take part in working towards advancing innovative, inclusive and scalable solutions to water challenges.
He further affirmed the UAE’s commitment to deepening its cooperation with the EU in advancing climate action, energy transition, water resilience, and global sustainability. He also highlighted that discussions in Brussels were instrumental in driving forward the climate adaptation and energy related commitments made at the 28thConference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which was held in Dubai in 2023, to ensure strong alignment with the EU ahead of the UN Ocean Conference 2025, COP30, and the 2026 UN Water Conference.
The visit included meetings with a number of EU officials and the European Investment Bank (EIB) reinforcing bilateral relations to explore the potential to expand investments in clean energy, infrastructure, and water sustainability.
Balalaa met with European Commission representatives: Ditte Juul-Jørgensen, Director-General for Energy; Florika Fink-Hooijer, Director-General of Environment; Kurt Vandenberghe, Director-General Climate Action; and Charlina Vitcheva, Director-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, in addition to representatives from the European External Action Service (EEAS).
The discussions focused on advancing joint efforts in water sustainability in the lead-up to 2026 UNWC, broader climate adaptation strategies, mitigating climate change, and enhancing cooperation ahead of the UN Ocean Conference 2025 in France.
