The official overseas visits and meetings conducted by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, since assuming his federal responsibilities, have reinforced the United Arab Emirates' presence on the international stage and reflected a sustained diplomatic activity that translates the wise leadership's vision of building balanced and influential relations with countries across the world.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's meetings with leaders and senior officials both inside and outside the country, alongside his reception of official delegations, have constituted important milestones for strengthening cooperation, exchanging visions, and coordinating positions on regional and international issues. They affirm the growing role His Highness plays in supporting the state's foreign policy and consolidating its standing as a trusted partner with credibility and the capacity to build consensus.

These visits and meetings derive their significance from the fact that they are not limited to the political or protocol dimension; their effects extend to opening new avenues for cooperation in the fields of economics, investment, defence, technology, innovation, education, and energy, thereby contributing to the advancement of development plans and the exchange of expertise.

They also serve to attract investment, create broader opportunities for shared growth, and represent practical bridges for bringing perspectives closer together, addressing common challenges, and promoting the stability that forms the foundation for the prosperity of nations and the well-being of societies.

Through this active presence, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum embodies a model of leadership that recognises that the strength of international relations is directly reflected in the lives of peoples — through the creation of jobs, the stimulation of trade, the transfer of knowledge, the development of vital sectors, and the support of security and stability. The state's growing partnerships also expand the horizons of humanitarian and developmental cooperation and strengthen communities' capacity to confront crises and achieve sustainable development.

Over the past two years, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's meetings have affirmed that UAE diplomacy is built on creating opportunities rather than merely managing relations, and on transforming political understandings into projects and partnerships with tangible impact — serving the interests of the state, achieving mutual benefit, and supporting peoples' aspirations for a future that is safer, more prosperous, and more sustainable.

On the international visits front, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's engagements have embodied the UAE's growing presence on the world stage and contributed to strengthening strategic partnerships and serving common interests. His Highness inaugurated this trajectory in September 2024 with an official visit to the Republic of Uzbekistan, during which he met President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and a number of senior officials.

The visit saw a series of fruitful meetings that addressed prospects for enhancing bilateral cooperation and means of developing the strategic partnership between the two countries, embodying the UAE's vision of building international relations founded on mutual respect and the achievement of shared interests.

His Highness's second overseas visit was to the sister state of Kuwait in October 2024, during which he met His Highness Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait. The meeting included a review of the development of bilateral relations that have linked the two countries over many long decades.

The meeting also covered the continuous growth of the strategic partnership between the two countries across political, economic, cultural, and social levels, and the development expected in the coming phase in light of shared objectives and visions for the future of comprehensive development in both countries, as well as their ambitions for the period ahead.

The meeting also reviewed overall developments on the Arab and international stages, the changes unfolding in the Middle East, and the challenges facing the world that demand the doubling of international efforts and the finding of effective solutions to avoid the serious negative consequences of conflicts and wars, and the disruption they cause to the march of development and peoples' aspirations for a safe and stable future enabling them to achieve the progress and development they seek.

During the visit, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum met a number of leaders and senior officials in the State of Kuwait and reviewed with them the course of bilateral cooperation and its achievements, as well as the hoped-for development that would support the development plans of both sides and affirm their ability to move toward a future holding more opportunities for growth and prosperity for the two brotherly peoples.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's visit to Kuwait reflected the depth of the historical and fraternal relations between the two countries and the bonds of kinship and shared destiny linking their peoples, strengthening bilateral cooperation and opening new horizons for partnership across all fields.

During the visit, His Highness discussed means of strengthening bilateral cooperation in numerous vital areas within the framework of the strategic partnership between the two countries, as well as the requirements for advancing this cooperation in ways that serve comprehensive development efforts in both states. The two sides agreed on the importance of raising the level of bilateral coordination to pave the way for further cooperation through increasing the exchange of expertise, ideas, and visions that would support the trajectory of UAE-Kuwait relations and contribute to achieving further progress, prosperity, and flourishing for both countries and their brotherly peoples.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, also led the UAE delegation participating in the 21st session of the Joint Defence Council meeting of Ministers of Defence of the Gulf Cooperation Council states, held in the Qatari capital Doha in November 2024. The meeting discussed a number of strategic topics on its agenda, focused broadly on means of establishing the necessary foundations to strengthen defence cooperation among the armed forces of GCC member states, in light of the close historical and fraternal ties among those states and in a manner befitting their leaders' aspirations for the future of joint Gulf cooperation across all its dimensions and vital fields.

In April 2025, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum paid an official visit to the Republic of India, during which he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The visit reflected the solidity of the strategic partnership between the two countries and the accelerating pace of its development, driven by convergent visions and the political will to strengthen cooperation.

Discussions focused on growing trade, investment, and tourism exchange, providing incentives for investors, and enabling the private sector in both countries to explore new opportunities and launch high-quality joint projects, drawing on the advantages afforded by the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and the Bilateral Investment Treaty.

The visit also highlighted the importance of expanding mutual investments and encouraging UAE and Indian companies to form new partnerships that capitalise on the development and economic opportunities offered by both countries, in support of sustainable development targets and enhanced economic cooperation horizons.

The visit featured intensive economic activity: Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum met India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, and the two sides discussed means of expanding the economic partnership, with bilateral trade having grown to 240 billion dirhams (AED) during 2024, an increase of more than 20 per cent.

His Highness also was briefed on the activities of the Bombay Stock Exchange, inaugurated the Nava Sheva Business Complex belonging to DP World — with investments exceeding 735 million dirhams (AED) — and witnessed the opening of Dubai Chambers' second representative office in India in the city of Bengaluru. Eight memoranda of understanding were also signed to strengthen cooperation in the sectors of infrastructure, healthcare, higher education, and logistics and maritime services.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, also paid an official visit to the Sultanate of Oman in May 2025, during which he met His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, Sultan of the sister Sultanate of Oman, at Al Barka Palace in the Omani capital Muscat.

The visit reflected the depth of bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries and the ongoing positive development across all fronts, in light of the fraternal and historical ties binding the UAE and Omani peoples, and the means of advancing them across various fields that support comprehensive development directions in both countries, particularly in economic, commercial, and tourism cooperation, as well as cooperation in cultural and knowledge fields.

During the visit, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum witnessed the signing of an agreement for the development and operation of Phase One of the Al Rawdah Special Economic Zone in the wilayat of Mahdah, in Al Buraimi Governorate, within the framework of the flourishing economic partnership and cooperation between the two brotherly countries.

His Highness also discussed during the visit the flourishing strategic partnership across various fields, which draws the foundations of its strength from the depth of fraternal relations between the two states and their brotherly peoples.

The meeting included a review of bilateral relations and the ongoing positive development across all fronts, in light of the fraternal and historical ties binding the UAE and Omani peoples, and means of advancing them across various fields supporting comprehensive development directions in both countries, particularly in economic, commercial, and tourism cooperation, as well as cooperation in cultural and knowledge fields.

On the sidelines of Dubai Airshow 2025, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum met Suren Papikyan, Minister of Defence of Armenia. The meeting addressed prospects for cooperation in the exchange of expertise and joint efforts to enhance conventional and future defence capabilities and modern defence systems, as well as cooperation in the preparation and training of human cadres and equipping them with theoretical and practical knowledge to enable them to employ advanced technologies in affirming the highest levels of readiness and operational efficiency for defence systems.

The two sides also discussed the most significant developments on the regional and international stages, developments in the Middle East, efforts to establish peace and spread the foundations of stability in the region in the near and long term, and a number of topics of common interest.

His Highness also received Ruslan Jaksilikov, Minister of Defence of Kazakhstan, on the sidelines of the 17th edition of the International Defence Exhibition IDEX 2025.

The meeting reviewed relations of cooperation between the UAE and the Republic of Kazakhstan and means of strengthening them across various fields, including the defence field through discovering further opportunities for the exchange of expertise and training to raise defence efficiency and readiness, in support of the comprehensive development journey of both sides.

During the current year, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum met His Excellency Sheikh Abdullah Ali Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Minister of Defence of the sister State of Kuwait, who paid a working visit to the country to participate in the activities of the