The UAE and Azerbaijan signed an economic partnership agreement aimed at boosting investment flows and cooperation across renewables, tourism, logistics, and construction services, according to a statement and state news agency Wam. The two countries’ non-oil trade hit USD 2.4 bn in 2024, up 43% y-o-y, while the UAE’s investments in the country exceed USD 1 bn.

Al Nahyan also discussed further potential projects in the renewables sector with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev yesterday, according to the statement. The UAE and Azerbaijan have strong energy ties, with the State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) investing USD 50 mn in Adnoc’s gas pipeline unit, Adnoc Gas Pipeline Assets, earlier this year, and Masdar planning a 240 MW Absheron-Garadagh onshore wind farm in Azerbaijan as part of a a pipeline of 10 GW of clear energy capacity in Azerbaijan.

Al Nahyan also met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Abu Dhabi, ahead of planned peace talks between Pashinyan and Aliyev in the emirate set to take place today, Wam reported separately. They discussed boosting cooperation across economic, investment and development sectors, as Al Nahyan reaffirmed his support of efforts to establish peace and stability across the Caucasus region.

Peace talks? The meeting — set to be the first formal encounter between the two leaders in months — follows a draft peace agreement that was finalized in March, though ceasefire violations have made the situation turbulent since. The agreement came after Azerbaijan recaptured Karabakh in September 2023, prompting Armenians that had established de facto independence there to flee.

UAE + Pakistan discuss fiscal cooperation in bilateral meeting: Financial Affairs Minister Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini met with Pakistan's Finance and Railways Minister Bilal Azhar Kayani to discuss fiscal management, tax reforms, and digital governance, according to a social media post on X. The meeting followed a June MoU between both nations on governance modernization.

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