George W Bush - Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum - Misha Glenny - Inside Dubai: Playground for the Rich TV - Secrets and Deals: How Britain Left the Middle East TV -
This country [UAE] has gotten its wealth from the ground ... It’s a modern society that’s using its wealth not only to educate its people, but to stay on the leading edge of technological change ... I don’t think most Americans understand the UAE. And I don’t think most Americans understand that your education systems are modern and that you’re thinking about the future in constructive ways. George W Bush, Bush Views Renewable Technologies at Masdar Exhibit, 2008
We in the UAE have no such word as ‘impossible’; it does not exist in our lexicon. Such a word is used by the lazy and the weak, who fear challenges and progress. Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum
The global money-laundering industry was a few hundred miles away in ... the United Arab Emirates ... Misha Glenny, McMafia
The al-Nahyans of Abu Dhabi. The discovery of huge oil reserves on Abu Dhabi territory proved a godsend to Dubai and the other five emirates that formed the new state of United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 1973 after the British decided to withdraw all its forces east of Suez. At present extraction, Abu Dhabi’s oil will last for another 200 years. The al-Nahyans’ cash ... is estimated to stand at $500 billion – half a trillion. ibid.
Abu Dhabi has been generous in its subsidies to the six other emirates of the UAE, which have no comparable oil fields. ibid.
The US is not happy with the Emirates because it has attracted a lot of shady companies, but at the same time it is seen as a safe haven for the US in the region. ibid.
At the very bottom of the pile are the women who are trafficked to the Emirates by force. ibid.
When foreigners go to work in the UAE, their employers take their passport and keep it. ibid.
A quarter of all men in the UAE have at least two wives. And keeping them all happy can be costly. Inside Dubai: Playground for the Rich II, BBC 2022
In 1971 Britain withdrew from Bahrain, Qatar and the Sheikdoms that soon became the UAE. Secrets and Deals: How Britain Left the Middle East, caption, BBC 2022
‘Britain forced these regions, sheikdoms and emirates into unequal relations.’ ibid. Taqi Albaharna
‘They [British] interfered in the local administrations. They organised coups.’ ibid. Dr Wafa Alsayed
For 50 years the Arab states have been independent and increasingly rich. Only recently have historians here in the Gulf begun to examine the previous era when Britain’s influence was dominant. ibid.
‘Britain dominated the Gulf’s resources politically, economically, and financially.’ ibid. Albaharna
Britain moved its Persian Gulf residency to Bahrain after World War II … Britain was highly dependant on Arab oil. ibid.
1965: As a result of the uprising, dozens of Bahrainis were exiled or imprisoned. ibid.
Abu Dhabi: ‘The usual English story: They said members of the ruling family carried out the coup.’ ibid. historian
The [UK] government prepared to slash spending and took a momentous decision: they would end Britain’s presence in the Gulf by 1971. ibid.
If Britain withdrew its troops, the Sheikhs would only have their local police for protection. ibid.
In February 1968 the rules of Bahrain, Qatar and the Trucial states agreed in principle to unite their nine Sheikhdoms into a federation. ibid.
In June 1970 a new Conservative government comes to power in the UK. Just 18 months remain until Britain is to leave the Gulf. But the islands [Bahrain] problem is no closer to being solved. ibid.
1971: In August Bahrain and Qatar each declared independence. ibid.
‘Today virtually the same families are on the throne in each Emirate.’ ibid. English dude