Valentina Matviyenko, Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, today received Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi, Speaker of the Federal National Council, FNC, and her accompanying delegation, who will participate in the 2nd Eurasian Women’s Forum, beginning tomorrow in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg.

Both sides discussed the means of strengthening their overall cooperation and partnership, in light of the developing friendship and strategic partnership between the UAE and Russia, which are supported by their leadership.

Al Qubaisi and Matviyenko commended the visions of their leadership and their efforts to improve their overall cooperation while highlighting the importance of the joint strategic partnership agreement between both countries, which was announced during the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to Russia in June, and his meeting with Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, as well as the mutual visits of officials from both countries.

Dr. Al Qubaisi and Matviyenko also stressed the importance of the forum, which will be attended by more than 110 countries and 27 international organisations and involve over 30 workshops and meetings, due to the diverse topics that will be discussed. The forum’s outcomes will be sent to the United Nations, UN, and other international organisations, with the aim of achieving security and stability for women and communities around the world.

Both sides noted that parliamentary cooperation is a key to the current relations between their countries, and they are looking forward to strengthening their relations and intensifying their efforts to combat terrorism and extremism while commending their growing cooperation in nuclear energy and space, and highlighting the work of the UAE Astronaut Programme.

The meeting addressed the importance of launching the "UAE-Russian Parliamentary Friendship Committee," which aims to encourage agreements between both sides and achieve their desired goals.

Matviyenko commended the FNC’s role, its local achievements, and its participation in regional and international parliamentary events. "We will meet with leading female members of the FNC and other leading women from around the world during the forum, whose agenda is full of topics concerning women, men, peace and security. The forum aims to achieve gender equality and promote dialogue, to achieve peace and security for women and the entire society," she said.

Al Qubaisi said that the FNC is keen to participate in events organised in Russia, which reflect the current robust relations between the two countries while affirming the importance of improving their parliamentary cooperation and commending Matviyenko’s role in strengthening these ties.

Al Qubaisi also highlighted the importance of exchanging visits, expertise, knowledge and technologies in various areas, especially nuclear energy and space while pointing out that the UAE announced its selection of the first two Emirati astronauts who will participate in space exploration missions, as part of the UAE Astronaut Programme, which aims to train and send Emirati astronauts to outer space to conduct scientific missions.