Displaying items by tag: UAE

On 3 January Russia and Ukraine exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war, in the biggest such swap since Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. 230 Ukrainian prisoners of war returned to their homes, and a total of 248 Russian servicemen were released from Ukrainian territory, in a deal brokered by the UAE. This is the 49th prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia during the war, Kyiv’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said. Volodymyr Zelensky said that 213 soldiers, eleven officers, and six civilians had been released; he added that negotiations ‘have not ceased for a single moment’. The UAE is among a handful of nations to have maintained close ties with Russia in spite of Putin’s decision to invade a European neighbour, which has otherwise left Russia isolated on the world stage and facing mounting Western and international sanctions.

The UN climate change conference in Dubai, hosted by the United Arab Emirates, is on the verge of a significant breakthrough in addressing climate change. The UAE negotiating team expresses 'cautious optimism' that COP28 will commit to gradually reducing and possibly eliminating fossil fuels over the coming decades. This is a remarkable shift, as fossil fuels were rarely discussed at previous climate conferences until COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, where the focus was on phasing down coal. While the commitment in Dubai may not set a specific expiry date for fossil fuel use and will probably allow for ‘abated’ fossil fuels with carbon capture, it represents a historic acknowledgment of the need to address the primary source of climate change. Sultan al-Jaber, COP28 president and head of UAE state oil company Adnoc, has been advocating for a fossil fuel phase-out; this underscores the significance of addressing climate change even in such a major oil-producing country. Interestingly, the number of delegates representing fossil fuel interests has quadrupled compared to COP27: see

President Sultan al-Jaber has denied allegations that the UAE plans to use the COP28 climate summit to negotiate oil and gas deals with other nations, as reported by the BBC on 27 November. Leaked briefing documents indicated the UAE's intention to discuss fossil fuel agreements with fifteen countries during the summit. The documents revealed proposed talking points for various countries, including China, Colombia, Germany, and Egypt, regarding fossil fuel collaboration. Mr Jaber, who is also the CEO of UAE's state oil company, Adnoc, and renewables business, Masdar, dismissed the allegations, calling them false and inaccurate. The controversy raises concerns about the intersection of climate goals and fossil fuel interests. The hope is that COP28 will help limit the long-term global temperature rise to 1.5C, which the UN's climate science body says is crucial to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. But that will require drastic cuts in greenhouse gas emissions - a 43% reduction by 2030 from 2019 levels.

Libyan warlord Haftar controls eastern parts of Libya and, fuelled by outside interests, could worsen Sudan’s conflict. Analysts describe a ‘nightmare scenario’ of multiple regional powers fighting a proxy war in Sudan, endangering over 45 million people. Recently, Haftar passed on crucial intelligence to Sudanese general Hemedti, detained his enemies, increased deliveries of fuel, and trained hundreds of RSF fighters in the urban warfare tactics needed in Khartoum and other cities. Hemedti and Haftar have also collaborated on smuggling operations of valuable illicit cargo between the two countries. Currently, neither Haftar nor his sponsors, UAE and Russia, will commit entirely to one side in a conflict whose outcome remains unclear. Also, he does not want to alienate Egyptian supporters who back Sudan’s General Burhan. One NLA militia commander said his force was ‘ready to support Hemedti but is still monitoring the unfolding situation in Sudan’.

Sultan Al Jaber, the CEO of the UAE’s national oil company, Adnoc, has been controversially appointed president of the UN’s COP28 summit in December; campaigners say this makes a mockery of the summit. Adnoc, the world’s 11th biggest oil and gas producer, delivered over a billion barrels of oil equivalent (BBOE) in 2021. Time is running out to end the climate crisis, yet Sultan Al Jaber is overseeing expansion to produce extra oil and gas, equivalent to 7.5bn barrels of oil, the fifth largest increase in the world. 90% would have to remain in the ground to meet the net zero scenario of the International Energy Agency. The UAE has the third largest plans for oil and gas expansion in the world, surpassed only by Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Human Rights Watch reported the United Arab Emirates is detaining 2,400+ Afghan asylum seekers at makeshift facilities after being evacuated from Kabul following the 2021 Taliban takeover. They are living in cramped, miserable conditions and stranded in limbo, with no hope of being resettled. The UAE denied conditions were poor and said they were working with the US to finish resettlement processes. Over 10,000 other Afghans who were flown to the UAE have been resettled in America, Canada and elsewhere. A further 70,000 were evacuated directly to the US before American troops left Kabul. The Afghans are housed in two converted apartment complexes known as Emirates Humanitarian City and Tasameem Workers City. Some Afghans had previously worked for US government-affiliated entities or programmes in Afghanistan. They reported constraints on their freedom of movement, limited access to fair refugee status, lack of adequate access to legal counsel or children’s education plus no psychosocial support.

January 2022 looks very different in contrasting corners of the Middle East and North Africa - from wealthy Gulf nations to countries in crisis like Afghanistan and Yemen. SAT7 analysts see hopeful signs of nations beating swords into ploughshares, but too few leaders are using their power, or lessening their grip on it, for the good of all. An important positive trend we will see continuing from 2021 is renewed diplomacy by key players and rivals in the region. The UAE reached out to Turkey with a $10 billion investment olive branch. Both countries are looking to de-escalate the tensions which have resulted, for example, from their military support for opposite sides in the Libyan conflict and their opposite policies towards the Muslim Brotherhood. Turkey has also sought to ease tensions with Egypt and began 2022 with a new rapprochement with Armenia. For the full briefing click the ‘More’ button.

The kings of Jordan and Bahrain flew to Abu Dhabi for an important meeting with crown prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as Bahrain’s foreign minister Abdullatif al-Zayani was in Israel meeting his Israeli and American counterparts. These important and unprecedented meetings illustrate the tectonic changes emerging in the Middle East. The tone was different in Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi. A Gulf Air flight which arrived in Tel Aviv, with Zayani and US envoy Avi Berkowitz on board, was the first of its kind; very likely Gulf Air will soon join Flydubai and Etihad, which have announced regular flights to Israel. Meetings about peace and the brave new world illustrates how Israel and the Gulf States are moving toward. This area improvement has been midwifed by the USA.

The PLO’s chief negotiator and executive secretary expressed concern that the UAE’s peace agreement with Israel will lead to other Arab states reaching similar ‘normalisation’ agreements. The PA sees such agreements as disregarding their demand that Palestinian ‘self-determination and independence’ must precede any formation of Arab friendly relations with Israel. The PLO said, ‘It is ‘a public birth for the Arab Zionists’, and admiration or support for Israel is forbidden. There are Arab groups that say, ‘Palestine is not my cause’. Groups say, ‘The Palestinians are ungrateful and we are employing them. We’ve helped them, but Israel is a beautiful, successful state.’

The UAE is a federation of seven emirates, ruled by tribal Sheikhs or Emirs. The largest, richest emirate is Abu Dhabi with significant oil and gas reserves. The development of oil and financial industries has brought fabulous wealth and rapid modernisation. Millions from around the world work there. The pride of status and prestige is marked by using money to gain personal power and glory. Because Islam dominates public life, Christian converts often lose their inheritance and parental rights, are forced to marry, are fired or are required to work for free. To avoid the death penalty or other penalties, they often feel that they must hide their faith or flee to another country due to fears of persecution. Pray that the Christian English, Arabic, Urdu, Filipino and Indian language worship groups and congregations will attract newcomers even though evangelism is prohibited, and that non-Muslims can worship in dedicated buildings or private homes.