The UAE pledged to ensure the continuity of global supply chains amid the coronavirus outbreak that has closed borders and disrupted the movement of goods.
The Emirates, which is the second-largest economy in the Arab world, joined and endorsed a ministerial statement issued by several countries to keep supply chains open and work against trade-restrictive measures.
“We will continue our efforts to ensure the flow of necessary supplies and the integrity of supply chains by supporting the continuity of operational logistical networks, and by maintaining air, land and sea shipping routes,” Sultan Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy, said on Sunday.
“There is no doubt that the country’s accession to this joint statement, which includes countries from many continents of the world, is consistent with our vision and leading policies to support the movement of trade and its continued growth."
The initiative, led by New Zealand and Singapore, stipulates that the signatory countries intend to intensify joint efforts and coordination to identify and remove trade restrictions measures that negatively affect the movement of essential goods.
The coronavirus outbreak, which had infected more than 3.4 million worldwide and killed over 243,000 people as of Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University, has derailed the global economy and brought trade and the travel industry to a standstill.
The global economy is set to contract 3 per cent this year as it slides into the deepest recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s, the International Monetary Fund said last month.
In a letter to David Parker, New Zealand’s Minister for Trade and Export Growth, Mr Al Mansoori said the “continuity of cross-border trade will increase the ability of the UAE and its external partners to cope with the pandemic crisis, while also maintaining vital economic co-operation channels”.
The signatory countries also affirmed their commitment to keep trade lines, including air and sea freight operations, open in order to facilitate the flow of goods. They also emphasised "the importance of refraining from imposing controls that hinder exports or applying tariff or non-tariff barriers to trade and removing any existing measures that restrict the supply of basic commodities, especially medical supplies during the ongoing crisis".
Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Laos, Myanmar and Uruguay are the other countries that pledged support to the initiative.
Last week, the IMF and the World Trade Organisation called for open trade policies and the removal of curbs on the trade of medical supplies and food items amid increasing export restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Export restrictions can be dangerously counterproductive. Such measures disrupt supply chains, depress production and misdirect scarce, critical products and workers away from where they are most needed,” the IMF and the WTO said.
