Poland in the UAE

Historical view 

Diplomatic relations between Poland and United Arab Emirates were established in September 1989, when the Polish Trade Centre was founded in Dubai (later transformed into the Commercial Counselor's Office, headed by Commercial Attaché Mr. Mariusz Kaźmierski.)

The Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Abu Dhabi was established on November 11, 1991.

Political cooperation after 1989

Diplomatic relations between Poland and the United Arab Emirates were established in 1989 and have grown in the last decade to evolve into strategic partnership. The UAE has become Poland's key partner in the Arab world in the context  of political dialogue and economic cooperation. Strategic cooperation and political support were bolstered during the exchange of high level visits (the President of the Republic of Poland in Dubai - December 2013, the Prime Minister of the Republic of  Poland in the UAE - April 2012, a visit of the Vice President, Prime Minister, Minister of Defense of the UAE, the ruler of Dubai in June 2015).  Poland and the UAE have reaffirmed their partnership on many high level meetings; Speaker of the Senate of the Republic of Poland (Dubai, November 2007) and Chairman of the Federal National Council of UAE (Warsaw, October 2008) the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of Poland (Dubai, 2016 and Abu Dhabi, 2018) or the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Poland (Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah, 2019).

For nearly a decade the United Arab Emirates have been Poland's largest economic and trade partner in the Arab world. The promotion of Polish interests in UAE involves: Polish Trade Office based in Dubai,  the National Chamber of Commerce and the Polish Tourist Organization, Credit Insurance, Bonds and Financing Public Company, which supports the activities of Polish exporters on the local market, providing insurance services to Polish entrepreneurs.  Polish Business Group was established in March 2006 under the auspices of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a communication platform between the representations of the governments of Poland  and the UAE.

On May 2015 the UAE and the European Union have signed a reciprocal bilateral short-stay visa waiver agreement exempting the UAE citizens from Schengen visa regime and making the UAE the first Arab country to  receive such a visa waiver for its nationals.  Since May 7, 2015, UAE citizens who hold diplomatic, special, service and ordinary passports are able to travel without a visa to  Poland and other EU countries which make up the Schengen area for stays of  up to 90 days (within any 180-day period of one year). Both Dubai based Airlines (Emirates and FlyDubai) offer its passengers direct daily services to Poland. In December 2018 Polish Oil and Gas Company PGNiG S.A. has signed an agreement with the emirate of Ras al Kaimah, UAE, to explore and produce hydrocarbons in Block 5.

Links:
National Chamber of Commerce
KUKE
Polish Business Group - UAE

Cultural cooperation between Poland and the United Arab Emirates is strong and is constantly developing. The Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Abu Dhabi works closely with cultural institutions of the UAE. The signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) announcing Poland as the Guest of Honour at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (ADIBF) in 2018 was of particular importance. The ceremony featured representatives of Tourism and Culture Authority of Abu Dhabi and the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in the UAE.  The MoU with Poland, which made Poland the Guest of Honour for ADIBF 2018, acknowledges its global reputation as a rich cultural destination that combines diverse backgrounds and presents an opportunity to introduce the ever-growing event’s audience, exhibitors and publishers to contemporary Polish culture and its modern literary scene.