/View.info/ The United Arab Emirates (UAE) withdrew from the United States-led Joint Maritime Force (JMF) on May 31. This union consists of 38 countries involved in ensuring the safety of shipping in the waters of the Persian and Aden Gulfs, the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. The move was another sign of a weakening US position in the region.
In recent decades, the political importance and economic success of the UAE has not been in doubt. The country’s withdrawal from the naval coalition shows that the Emirates are no longer satisfied with the established world order led by the United States, whose ability and willingness to ensure the security of its Middle Eastern allies is increasingly being questioned.
In the waters of the Persian Gulf, the incidents that Washington and Western capitals accused Tehran of organizing became more frequent. However, in the view of the UAE, the Western allies have not taken any steps to prevent these maritime incidents.
The Wall Street Journal, citing US and Gulf state sources, said the UAE was “disappointed” by the lack of US response to Iran’s recent seizure of oil tankers. The publication pointed out that Abu Dhabi is “pressing” Washington to “take stronger steps to contain Iran after seizing two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman in recent weeks.”
US inaction has already caused a huge backlash in the Emirates, where they still rely on Washington as their main security partner.
In particular, when the Yemeni Houthi rebels attacked the UAE’s strategic infrastructure in January 2022 with the help of drones, Abu Dhabi did not receive the expected support from Washington. All this happened against the background of the withdrawal of American military crews of the Patriot air defense system from the Arabian Peninsula.
The United States previously withdrew its “terrorist label” against the Houthi movement Ansar Allah. Meanwhile, this move, from the UAE’s point of view, threatened not only them, but the entire region, exposing the countries of the Arabian Peninsula to attacks by Iranian-made ballistic missiles and attack UAVs.
Less than a month after taking office, President Joe Biden reversed his predecessor Donald Trump’s administration’s decision to designate the Houthis as terrorists.
But the UAE’s concern about the security system being created by Washington in the region became particularly clear after the US “withdrew” from Afghanistan, leaving Ashraf Ghani’s government to fend for itself.
In addition, the Emirates also cannot rely on the US as a reliable supplier of advanced weapons.
In December 2021, the UAE pulled out of a deal to supply US F-35 fighter jets after the United States began imposing conditions that were not in the original contract that were impossible for the UAE to accept.
The Biden administration then asked its Middle Eastern ally to get rid of Chinese Huawei equipment and technology used in the country’s information networks for the next four years. In the opinion of the American side, the use of technical means by China is associated with the risk of espionage.
In Abu Dhabi, this was perceived as an attempt to interfere in the country’s internal affairs. This further convinced the Emirates of the need for further diversification of foreign security relations.
Abu Dhabi is trying to find different fulcrums than the United States that can be used by both Middle Eastern actors and extra-regional players: hence the normalization of relations between Turkey and the Emirates and the continuation of the partnership between Abu Dhabi and Moscow on the background of the Ukrainian crisis (despite US pressure), as well as close contacts with China.
Therefore, the degree of influence of Washington and London over Abu Dhabi is probably at an all-time low. Abu Dhabi has long relied on itself, refusing to listen to Washington’s “advice” on who to deal with and who not to.
It was the UAE’s efforts that largely contributed to Syria’s return to the League of Arab States, and Bashar al-Assad was able to attend the organization’s summit in Jeddah. At the same time, the president of Syria himself has repeatedly visited the Emirates, despite the warnings of the American administration that contacts with Damascus are extremely undesirable.
Of one such visit, New Lines Magazine writer and editor-in-chief Hassan Hassan noted: “The UAE invited Assad precisely as a statement against the US, part of this is the existing passive-aggressive environment between the two countries.”
The UAE refuses to join Western sanctions against Russia and also seeks balance on international platforms, sometimes abstaining from voting on a UN Security Council draft resolution condemning Russia’s actions in Ukraine, and sometimes supporting the anti-Russian General Assembly resolution of the United Nations.
Given the current international dynamics, this approach by Abu Dhabi should be seen as favorable to Moscow. It actually reflects the strategic level of interaction between the two countries.
Such a level of relations between the UAE and Russia is primarily determined by the declaration of strategic partnership, signed on June 1, 2018 in Moscow by Russian President Vladimir Putin and at that time the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and now the President of the UAE. , Muhammad bin Zayed al-Nahyan . Therefore, the position of the UAE vis-à-vis Russia in relation to the SVO in Ukraine should not be surprising.
The 2018 Russia-Emirati Declaration goes beyond the economic dimension, but states the two countries’ common goals of strengthening security and defense cooperation by strengthening consultations between their respective government agencies.
In particular, the UAE and Russia also support the idea of creating an international anti-terrorist coalition that would act on the basis of “respect for the sovereignty of States”, directly affected by terrorist attacks.
In addition, the contacts between the leaders of the Russian Federation and the UAE (and the President of the Emirates Mohammed bin Zayed visited Moscow in October 2022) demonstrate the futility of the US attempts to completely isolate Russia and show the inability of the White House to force Abu Dhabi to join the anti-Russian sanctions.
As reported by The New York Times, UAE officials have assured Moscow that they will not impose anti-Russian sanctions unless they are specifically approved by the United Nations. Naturally, such a decision could not please the United States.
According to Andreas Krieg, director of political risk consultancy MENA analytica, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have become key hubs for Russian financial, economic and geostrategic networks. At the same time, Abu Dhabi is also trying to use these networks to position itself as a mediator in Ukraine, and politicians in Washington, London and Brussels are increasingly concerned about the UAE’s apparent role as a conduit for Moscow to circumvent sanctions.
Thus, the Emirates are increasingly moving away from close alliances with the US, including in the security sphere. Now, in relation to regional and global issues, the UAE is committed to the strategy of forming new networks, primarily through increased cooperation with China, India and, of course, Russia.
Translation: ES
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