How water cooperation can chart a new course for diplomacy

Editor's note: Decision Makers is a global platform for decision makers to share their insights on events shaping today's world. Abdulla Balalaa serves as the UAE Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily those of CGTN.

In diplomacy, we often talk about what divides us. Water reminds us of what we share.

Over the past year in the run-up to the 2026 UN Water Conference, my conversations with international stakeholders, including policymakers, diplomats, business leaders and civil society, have often returned to the same essential question: How do we secure a more prosperous, stable and resilient future in a world that is becoming increasingly interconnected, yet often struggles to act collectively?

Whether we are discussing food systems, energy transformation, climate mitigation, economic development or technological innovation, water seems to be the invisible yet critical thread underpinning every conversation. It is the foundation beneath all sectors and all opportunities, connecting national priorities in ways that are impossible to ignore.

While recognizing that the shared nature of water is a vital first step, turning that recognition into action is another matter. I often feel that challenging times also present the biggest opportunities for collaboration, to bring stakeholders from across the spectrum together to create a new roadmap forward.

There is a tendency to think that international cooperation is possible only when countries agree on the broader questions of the day. In reality, progress often begins with something more specific: a shared challenge, a common interest and a willingness to work together.

Water offers a compelling example of the nuances of expectation versus reality. Every country depends on water, although each experiences water insecurity differently. Those differences can create unique opportunities for countries to learn from one another, combine their capabilities and develop solutions that would be harder to achieve independently.

No single institution possesses all the expertise, technology and capital. No country can achieve water resilience in isolation. The question is not whether countries will pursue their own interests, but whether they can build partnerships that make pursuing those interests together more valuable than pursuing them alone.

Ultimately, cooperation on water can create relationships between governments, connect researchers and industries, encourage investment, and establish channels of engagement that endure beyond individual projects and political cycles. Trust can be built through the experience of working together and delivering results. For me, this is an important part of what water diplomacy can offer the international community. It is a way to make cooperation tangible, demonstrate its value and build the foundations for further collaboration.

The close partnership between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China on water is one example of this in practice. Our two countries have different geographies, development experiences and water systems. Yet both share a common interest in strengthening water resilience, accelerating innovation and ensuring that technologies meet the needs of our communities.

The UAE-China bilateral relationship allows us to understand what each side brings, where our priorities align and how we can create value together. Through our water collaboration, we are demonstrating how countries can pursue their own interests while advancing broader shared goals, rather than treating them as competing objectives.

China brings substantial scientific, industrial and technological capabilities. The UAE has significant experience in water innovation in a harsh, arid environment. By bringing our unique yet complementary strengths together, we can create opportunities to not only accelerate our collective progress but also contribute unique solutions to wider global challenges.

The value of this becomes even clearer when we move from principle to practice. The completion of the landmark Taweelah Independent Water Plant (IWP) demonstrates what can happen when countries, companies and innovators bring complementary expertise together around a shared challenge.

Based in Abu Dhabi and built by PowerChina under an engineering, procurement and construction model, the facility has become the world's largest reverse-osmosis seawater desalination plant, producing around 900,000 cubic meters of freshwater per day and meeting the water needs of millions of households across the city.

For the UAE, desalination is fundamental to water resilience. However, securing water resources for the future goes far beyond just producing it. This means improving efficiency, reducing energy consumption, and developing and integrating responsible artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies to make water systems more sustainable, efficient and resilient. The construction of the IWP is emblematic of how collaboration between entities in the UAE and China can turn a shared challenge into an opportunity while delivering tangible benefits to communities.

Scientific partnerships are another vital dimension. In May 2025, the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China's Institute of Seawater Desalination and Multipurpose Utilization, part of the People’s Republic of China's Ministry of Natural Resources. The partnership aims to advance desalination innovation through joint research and training.

These examples matter because they show what international cooperation can achieve when it brings together shared bilateral priorities with scientific expertise, commercial capability and implementation.

They also illustrate the value of effective partnerships in developing capabilities, establishing institutional relationships and creating opportunities for further collaboration.

International cooperation is often judged by the agreements that countries sign or the positions they reach in multilateral negotiations. These remain important, but cooperation must also be assessed by what it enables governments, institutions and people to achieve together, such as creating economic opportunities and improving access to reliable water and energy.

Water infrastructure, technology, finance, and resources all have strategic significance. Cooperation must therefore be grounded in mutual respect, clear common objectives, and a recognition that partnerships work best when their benefits are understood and shared.

This is where water diplomacy becomes a powerful instrument: bringing countries together around shared interests, forging practical partnerships and delivering solutions that strengthen water resilience across borders.

This December, the 2026 UN Water Conference will offer a pivotal opportunity to turn the growing momentum behind water cooperation into concrete action. Governments must create the conditions for progress, but delivering it at scale requires businesses, financial institutions, researchers, civil society and youth to work together, combining their expertise and resources to turn shared ambition into lasting impact.

The real test is whether we can translate that cooperation into results by aligning expertise, mobilizing investment and building partnerships that continue to deliver long after the conference in Abu Dhabi. Success will be measured by the decisions taken, the investments mobilized and the solutions brought to scale.

The UAE-China partnership illustrates what is possible when countries turn shared priorities into shared progress. By bringing together different experiences, expertise and capabilities, the two countries can advance common goals with the potential to drive meaningful, global impact.

As we prepare to welcome the international community to Abu Dhabi, we have an opportunity to demonstrate what purposeful cooperation can achieve when countries come together to address a challenge that affects us all.

In diplomacy, we will not always agree, nor should we expect every shared challenge to erase our differences. But we can choose where to cooperate, recognize where our interests converge and prove that collective action can achieve what no country could accomplish alone. Water gives us that common ground and an opportunity to show the world what we can achieve when we work together.

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