JERUSALEM, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Israeli President Isaac Herzog opened Monday Israel's national day at Dubai Expo 2020.
When addressing the expo on the second day of his trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), he said the expo is a "reminder of what can be accomplished when we work together to break down borders by connecting minds and imagining a different future."
According to Herzog, bilateral trade has topped 1 billion U.S. dollars, over 120 agreements have been signed, and a 100 million dollar bilateral R&D fund was established recently.
Saying 250,000 Israelis have already visited the UAE, the Israeli president voiced his hope that more people from the UAE will travel to Israel after the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the speech, the Israeli flag was raised and the Israeli national anthem was played, said the president's office in a statement.
As the first Israeli president to visit the UAE, Herzog departed on Sunday for the two-day trip, and met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed over bilateral ties and security issues.
Israel and the UAE signed the so-called Abraham Accord, a U.S.-brokered normalization agreement, in September 2020. The UAE was the first Gulf state to agree to normalize ties with Israel, followed by Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett visited the UAE last December. ■
