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

UAE cover image

United Arab Emirates

November 5, 2026

Abu Dhabi 8:29 pm

30°C

FADEL SENNA / AFP via Getty Images

UAE taps French firm for first-ever natural hydrogen exploration: What to know

Under the UAE National Hydrogen Strategy 2050, the Gulf country aims to establish itself as a global producer and supplier of low-emission hydrogen by 2031 while supporting its net-zero emissions target by 2050.

United Arab Emirates

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi (R), in a meeting with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (L) on Nov. 2, 2026.

OpenAI's Altman signs UAE energy, government deals amid Gulf funding push

The deals deepen the company’s ties to the UAE as the ChatGPT creator pursues a massive new funding round with help from Middle East investors.

United Arab Emirates

Latest News

UAE's Nusseibeh comes in fourth in latest UNSG straw poll: What to know

Lana Nusseibeh, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations, speaks at a Sudan Humanitarian Fund event at the Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, on February 3, 2026. (Photo by Alex WROBLEWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)

United Arab Emirates

Canada, UAE sign trade pact as Ottawa seeks to diversify beyond US

Dock workers load and unload shipping containers in the Port of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

United Arab Emirates

UAE battles tanker oil spill as war's environmental toll mounts

FADEL SENNA / AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Las Vegas gambling operator Wynn Resorts to open first UAE casino

The UAE is looking to lure gaming tourists with the development of a large casino in the northern emirate of Ras al-Khaimah.

United Arab Emirates

The flags of Israel, United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain are projected on the ramparts of Jerusalem's Old City on September 15, 2020 in a show of support for Israeli normalisation deals with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed landmark accords normalizing the Jewish state's relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as part of a peace push brokered by US President Donald Trump. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty

Analysis

Israel-UAE trade to hit $3.3B in 2024 as wars in Lebanon, Gaza continue

Despite a growing Arab public backlash against economic ties with Israel, and politically strained ties between the UAE and Israel since the Gaza war, bilateral trade has continued across the technology, tourism and agriculture sectors.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

A man walks across from a raging fire at oil storage tanks a day after Israeli strikes on the port of Yemen's Houthi-held city of Hodeidah on July 21, 2024.

Analysis

How an Israeli retaliation on Iran could impact Gulf energy flow

Energy facilities along the east and west of the Arabian Peninsula brace for possible Israeli attacks against Iran and its proxies.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

A Middle East Airlines commercial aircraft taking off from Beirut's international airport flies amid smoke billowing above the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs, in the aftermath of overnight Israeli airstrikes, on Sept. 28,2024.

Middle East airlines alter, axe flights following Iran missile attack on Israel

Late on Tuesday, Iran launched more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel in what it said was in retaliation for last Friday’s assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, the chief of Lebanon-based militia Hezbollah.

An Emirati man walks in front of the stand of Masdar City at the World Future Energy Summit exhibition in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 18, 2012.

Masdar acquisition of Terra-Gen stake builds on UAE-US renewable energy ties

The UAE and the US launched a renewable energy partnership in 2022 with the view of deploying 100 GW of clean energy globally by 2035.

United Arab Emirates

Smoke billows during airstrikes in central Khartoum as the Sudanese army attacks positions held by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces throughout the capital, Khartoum, Sudan, Sept. 26, 2024.

What's behind attack on UAE ambassador in Sudan?

The UAE's role in Sudan is coming under greater scrutiny as the battle for power between rival groups SAF and RSF drags on into its 17th month.

United Arab Emirates

The photo shows a tank for carbon dioxide of chemical company Covestro AG at their at their plant in Dormagen, western Germany, on Feb. 11, 2020.

UAE's ADNOC seals $16B deal to buy German chemical firm Covestro

The deal is set to be the largest takeover ever by a Middle Eastern company of a European firm.

United Arab Emirates

This combination of file photos created July 15, 2020, shows Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk in Washington, DC, on March 9, 2020, and Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos in Washington, DC, Oct. 22, 2019.

UAE’s Sheikh Tahnoon discusses AI, tech with Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk in US

His meetings came after UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed met earlier this week with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

United Arab Emirates

US President Joe Biden greets Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates at the White House, on Monday, September 23, 2024 in Washington, District of Columbia. World leaders including President Biden and President Nahyan will travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. (Photo by Aaron Schwartz / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by AARON SCHWARTZ/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Why UAE's upgrade to US 'major defense partner' will not deter China

While the designation comes with many benefits for the UAE, placing it on par with India, it lacks the formal security guarantees provided to other nations, including South Korea and Japan.

Joyce Karam

Uber, China's WeRide to launch self-driving robotaxis in UAE

WeRide already operates the largest robotaxi fleet in the UAE, where residents can access its robotaxi services through the TXAI app.

United Arab Emirates

US President Joe Biden and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan walk to the Oval Office for a meeting at the White House on Sept. 23, 2024 in Washington, DC.

US declares UAE 'major defense partner,' seeking to outbid China

The move put the US-UAE military relationship on the same footing as that between the United States and India.

United Arab Emirates

MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

In White House visit, UAE leader seeks cooperation on Gaza and AI

UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will meet with President Joe Biden in his first official visit to Washington since 2017.

United Arab Emirates