United Arab Emirates - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

UAE cover image

United Arab Emirates

June 27, 2026

Abu Dhabi 3:35 pm

33°C

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Gulf states push incentives for investors, expats after war dents image

Several Gulf states are working to recover their images as global havens of stability in the wake of the Iran war.

United Arab Emirates

A worker at a market for fuel oil and automotive fuel on March 17, 2026, in Erbil, Iraq.

Explainer

After UAE and Qatar, could Iraq be next to leave OPEC?

Iraq is seeking a higher production quota as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has slashed oil revenues and plunged the country into a fiscal crisis.

Latest News

Interview

Franco-Gulf investment holds firm despite Iran war, French official says

French Trade & Invest Commissioner for United Arab Emirates and Middle East and Business France's regional director for the Middle East Axel Baroux. — Business France

Axel Baroux

France’s trade and investment commissioner for the UAE and Middle East

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Mohammed Soliman

In Washington, DC, reporting on Gulf politics

Trump Tower interior

Trump adds to Gulf portfolio with Dubai tower deal

The Trump Organization and Dar Global have unveiled a new development, adding to others in Oman and Saudi Arabia this year.

United Arab Emirates

In this picture taken on May 10, 2023, people attend the UAE Climate Tech Forum in Abu Dhabi. Faced with mounting pressure over planet-heating pollution, the Arab Gulf's energy giants are turning to humble tech start-ups as they search for ways to remove emissions while keeping oil flowing. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Tech investment slump reaching critical stage for cash strapped Middle East startups

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan reviews the honour guard.

China, UAE hold air force drills in Xinjiang as defense relations grow

The joint air force training exercise, dubbed Falcon Shield, began on Wednesday in the northwest Xinjiang province of China and will continue until late July.

United Arab Emirates

Saudi and foreign journalists are pictured at the Future Investment Initiative forum at the King Abdulaziz Conference Center in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh on Oct. 29, 2019.

Middle East startups see funding fall by 34% in first half of 2024

Although startup funding levels have plateaued globally, MENA reported an increase in early-stage rounds and investor participation.

United Arab Emirates

RYAN LIM/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

What's next for Turkey-UAE ties as economic cooperation hits record high?

The fast-improving ties between the United Arab Emirates and Turkey will reach new heights and create employment opportunities in both countries, industry experts and Turkish officials believe.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi gestures before his speech as he holds a letter by President Droupadi Murmu (not pictured) requesting him to form the country's new government, at the presidential palace Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on June 7, 2024.

Analysis

Can Modi fast-track India-Mideast-Europe corridor post-reelection?

Ramping up initial phase of the corridor between India and the United Arab Emirates tops the agenda in New Delhi.

Sabena Siddiqui

By Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

TOPSHOT - Smoke billows as an Egyptian farmer burns hay stubbles in Qaliubia, some 40 kms north of Cairo, on October 23, 2006. The post-harvest burning suffocates Cairo, one of the most polluted cities in the world. AFP PHOTO/KHALED DESOUKI (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Climate crisis stokes growing challenges amid Middle East economic diversification drives

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) listens to a speech by United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi (R) during the inauguration of the newly built floating solar power plant on the water that can generate 192 mega watts of peak electricity in cooperation between the Indonesian government and Masdar from the UAE, at Cirata Reservoir, West Java, on November 9, 2023. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP) (Photo by BAY ISMOYO/AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

G42-Microsoft partnership in Kenya 'just the beginning,' says UAE trade minister

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi discusses momentum in UAE trade with the US, the benefits of economic diversification and Africa’s priority in UAE trade policy.

Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi

Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade

Ground crews prepare an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, powering one of its engines with a hundred per cent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), for a demonstration flight at the Dubai International Airport in Dubai, on January 30, 2023. - Emirates said it successfully flew a Boeing 777 powered by sustainable aviation fuel today, as the Middle East's largest airline aims to halve its jet fuel consumption. The Dubai-based carrier has used sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) since 2017, but said its test flight w

Are GCC states prepared for net zero in aviation?

Kate Dourian

In Dubai, reporting on energy

A general view of the city skyline at sunset from Dhow Harbour, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Feb. 5, 2015.

Analysis

Is Abu Dhabi Global Market poised to rival world’s leading financial hubs?

The Abu Dhabi Global Market, an international free zone in the heart of the UAE capital, is attracting global companies and investors as it looks to become one of the world's leading financial hubs.

Vanessa Ghanem

By Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Researchers believe these ancient residential buildings may represent part of the lost city of Tu'am in the United Arab Emirates. The city is thought to have reached its zenith in the sixth century.

Culture

Ancient lost city may have been unearthed in UAE: What we know

Archeologists believe recent discoveries in the United Arab Emirates’ Al Sinniyah Island may be connected to an ancient city famed for its pearls that fell into decline after the sixth century.

United Arab Emirates

UAE National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan meets Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in Seattle on June 7, 2024.

Analysis

With China rivalry in mind, UAE's Sheikh Tahnoon hits tech reset in US visit

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the United Arab Emirates’ national security adviser and an influential brother of the country’s president, visited Washington this month.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech