Dubai, Nov 4 (IANS) British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has expressed confidence that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would contribute to mitigating the global financial crisis and reiterated his call for international cooperation in this regard.
In the course of a meeting with Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum here Tuesday, on the last day of his four-day visit to the Gulf, Brown said he was confident that the UAE leadership was keen to help set up a required balance in the world financial system.
Pointing out that the UAE was one of the first countries to back national economic and financial institutions by injecting liquidity into the system in the wake of the crisis, he said: "This step has ensured the investors and wooed capital and foreign investors into the country."
The British premier said the existing cooperation between financial institutions in the UAE and Britain would continue.
On his part, Sheikh Mohammed underlined the importance of cooperation between the financial and banking institutions of the UAE and Britain. "(There) are new given issues to be employed by the two sides to build transparent and balanced partnership far from competition in order to achieve objectives and joint interests," he said.
Sheikh Mohammed also stressed the need for joint international efforts at levels of governments and private sector to reach a joint vision and set mechanisms to resuscitate the global economy, banking sector and world financial system.
Brown came on a tour of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE seeking contributions for his proposed expanded International Monetary Fund (IMF) as bailout package in the face of the crisis.
Speaking at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum and Exhibition Conference (ADIPEC) 2008 in the UAE capital Monday, Brown had called for a greater say in the IMF for countries that contribute to his multi-billion dollar funding proposal for the Washington-based institution.
Under his proposal, Brown wants to add billions of dollars to the $250 billion that the IMF has it disposal, drawn from currency reserves of countries, to bail out those nations that are under pressure because of the financial crisis.
Brown had touched some raw nerves in the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) when he opposed OPEC's decision to cut output effective Nov 1 as oil prices touched $60 a barrel last week.
Earlier, after his arrival in Abu Dhabi from Qatar Monday on the last leg of his Gulf tour, the British premier had a meeting with UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
The two leaders reviewed bilateral ties and ways to bolster these, and also deliberated on regional and international issues.
Brown led a powerful delegation comprising British Secretary of State for Business Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Miliband, a business team comprising top executives of British companies and representatives of leading British universities during the course of the visit.
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