Dubai: The historic decision by Britain to leave the European Union (EU) has elicited a strong response from non-UK expatriates in the UAE. Here’s what some of them had to say.

“The British pound fell strongly at the news and if it remains low compared to the US dollar, it will make the UAE dirham more expensive in relation to the pound, as the dirham follows the dollar. That means less spending in the hospitality industry by Brits visiting UAE. There are about a hundred treaties between the two sides that will have to be renegotiated. A lot of businesses will move to the EU to avoid red tape and take advantage of the free flow of trade within the EU. The UK is an island, and its exit will set it back decades.”

— Dubai-based Christos Triantafyllopoulos, 41, Greek

“I had expected a clear win for the Remain camp. I am married to a Brit, my eldest daughter works in London, the youngest studies in Vienna. We are a truly European family. Yes, there are deficits in the European Union, nothing is perfect ... but I believe Europe needs Britain to help resolve the problems the EU faces.

“‘Leave’ politicians and the right-wing press have a lot to answer for with their toxic and untruthful campaign. Another downside is this vote will strengthen the right-wing parties throughout Europe. In my opinion, 23rd June will go down in history as a very dark day for the UK and for Europe.”

— Abu Dhabi-based Martin Geskes, architect, German

“I think this is very sad for UK and for the entire European Union. Sweden will be losing a big ally within the European Union which is a big blow. There is now lot of uncertainty surrounding this move. I’m sure there will be negotiations as EU doesn’t want to see other countries doing the same as UK. UK feels that they can keep doing trade with new agreement, but it will be very hard to say now how effective and easy that would be. Coming days are testing times and it would be interesting to know how other EU countries would respond to this move.

— Abu Dhabi-based Anna Andreasson, Swedish, United Nations Population Fund Liaison officer

Non-Europeans speak

“Voting in the UK referendum and being part of such a great decision for UK has been great. There was a lot going in the past weeks. Now that the results are out, I am hoping it doesn’t have a major impact on the British economy. I am hoping for a more stable and powerful UK in the coming years.” ‎

— Former Dubai resident Afrada Basheer currently lives in London with her husband, an engineer in British Telecom

British expatriate view

“I am thoroughly disappointed and even embarrassed at the Leave vote. In my opinion, the decision to be part of the EU would always be a discussion between political parties, but it was a mistake to push for a referendum on the issue. Globalisation has brought about a lot of changes worldwide, and people in the UK mistakenly attributed some of their own troubles to EU membership.

The decision to leave gives a very negative image of the need for international cooperation to solve problems. And [I] believe England is in for some rocky times ahead. It will become more isolationist, but most people will see no real difference from leaving the EU. All of this is also disturbing for European confidence.

“Other than that, those of us expats who feel European are at a loss, because this decision also questions our European identities.”

— Abu Dhabi-based Dr Chris Butcher, 52, orthopaedic surgeon, British