UAE pleases Biden with superficial reforms in the region
Political groups monitor several steps taken by the Emirati regime to improve its deteriorating image and satisfy US President Joe Biden’s administration.
Observers highlight several changes that the Emirati policy had towards many files in the region and its interventions in many conflict areas.
Observers believe that this reflects the extent to which Abu Dhabi was affected by the arrival of Badin to the White House and the change in the American approach in dealing with the Middle East region.
The Libyan file
The first of these changes is related to the Libyan file. Many sources confirm that Abu Dhabi has significantly reduced weapons and logistical support for Khalifa Haftar.
After years of extensive financial and military support, Abu Dhabi provided directly or through its allies to Haftar in the hope of achieving military victory and control over all of the Libyan lands.
The political process in Libya led by the United Nations to unify the country is gaining momentum after the failure of the Emirati bet on Haftar.
The UAE sought to dismantle parts of its military base in the port of Assab in Eritrea and evacuate the forces and equipment used to support the Saudi-led coalition’s war in Yemen.
The US Bloomberg Agency also discussed the Emirati role in the region after the 2011 revolutions by leading the counter-revolution.
Abu Dhabi sought to neutralize political Islam’s influence and its enthusiasts, based on its position that these movements threaten the ruling family.
Libya was an important hub, if not the most important for the UAE, as a confidential UN report in May 2020 found that the UAE was running a secret air bridge to supply Haftar with weapons in violation of the UN arms embargo.
Emirati flights to eastern Libya have decreased dramatically, although that may be because they have already deployed enough equipment for any future battle.
Objects of foreign policy
This shift coincides with a change in old faces in the UAE’s foreign policy.
Anwar Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, who was the most prominent official spokesman for the Emirati interference, was removed from his position to assume the role of political advisor to the Emirates leader.
The UAE has also appointed Khalifa Shaheen Al-Marr as a state minister, who has served as ambassador to Turkey, Iran and Syria, indicating a potential shift towards mending relations with opponents.
Yemeni file
Side by side, there was also an Emirati shift in the Yemeni file. The UAE joined the Saudi-led campaign to expel the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels from the capital, Sanaa.
Six years later, the war has failed to achieve those goals while contributing to the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe, prompting Biden to demand an end to the fighting with the suspension of arms sales to the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
These Emirati interventions in the region had its costs. In February 2021, the New York Times reported that the failed attack on the Emirati embassy in Ethiopia was the work of an Iranian sleeper cell seeking to achieve goals in response to the US assassination of Qassem Soleimani last year.
The Gulf Reconciliation
The Gulf reconciliation and ending the boycott of Qatar also came due to Biden’s victory and in preparation for the post-Trump phase by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The reconciliation did not include any concessions on Qatar’s part regarding the thirteen conditions imposed on Qatar.
Some measures were taken as part of the reconciliation efforts, including an Emirati-Qatari meeting held in Kuwait last week to discuss joint files; opening airspace between the two countries and the various crossings and travel bans, and droping the cases that Qatar had filed against the UAE in international courts against the backdrop of the blockade.
