As politicians in Washington scrutinise the DP World's takeover of six major US ports, they should focus on the simple fact that this is a deal tailored to the best interest of the US.

The acquisition of the ports has already been meticulously reviewed and passed by the US Committee on Foreign Investment, hence injecting phantom security concerns and invoking 9/1 1 paranoia in addition to latent anti-Arab sentiment is a strategic blunder.

It came as a shock to many of us in the UAE that a sound business transaction which lives up to the best international criteria got so entangled with American domestic politics. What is alarming is the extent of the outcry and how lawmakers across the political spectrum have used the sale to score points.

Swapping a sound business package, which is in the best interest of the US, for petty political gains is not what the outside world expects from champions of free trade and economic liberalisation in the US Congress.

The UAE is a moderate country and a good friend of the US in the Arab World, in itself a rare commodity. This Arab Gulf state which is referred to by the US State Department as "key partner in the war on terror" has succeeded in staying clear of Islamic fundamentalism.

Its record of fighting global terrorism is impeccable. There is no denying, however, that some of the financing for 9/11 has gone through its banking services.

But then again most of the pilot training for the 9/1 1 took place in the US and most of the elaborate planning for the tragic attack on New York and Washington took place in Hamburg, Germany.

No one has ever suggested punishing Germany or thwarting the Daimler takeover of Chrysler, a strategic US asset of similar magnitude to the DP World acquisition of US ports. The DaimlerChrysler partnership created a world class entity that strengthened trans-Atlantic business cooperation.

The ports deal has similar potentialities to strengthening Arab-American relationship. This is a fundamental American objective. The ports deal is a huge strategic asset. It comes at a time when US is investing heavily in political and economic reform in this deeply turbulent region. This is a godsend opportunity to show the seriousness of reform intentions in Washington.

Since 9/l1 the UAE government has done everything conceivable to clear its financial sector and bring it in line to world standard. However, there will always be a bad guy who will try to exploit our open economy and free society.

This however, is no reason to punish a county that adheres strictly to the principle of free trade which has been fundamental to its emergence as the second largest economy in the Arab World and eventually as a possible Arab Gulf Tiger.

Reward

The US should reward the UAE. One practical way to do this is for politicians to stop meddling with the ports deal. The US needs this deal for broader strategic considerations, more so than the UAE whose interest is strictly business.

The six American ports are perhaps the least attractive component of DP World takeover of P&O. DPW could easily disregard them and still remain the world's third largest port operator.

Politicians in Washington are picking on the wrong deal and the wrong county for the wrong reason at the wrong time. The UAE is about to sign a free trade agreement with the US which is a central piece in Washington's reform initiative in the Arab world.

The fifth and final round will be held in March. If DP World acquisition is scuttled, it will reflect badly on the free trade agreement. The UAE is well advised to put the upcoming discussion on hold until the current port controversy is cleared.

This will be a major setback which should not skip lawmakers in Washington who are engaged in politics of the worst kind. They should know better that it is in the interest of the US to strengthen its relationship with a forward thinking state such as the UAE.

Stifling the ports deal now will surely send the wrong message and will further isolate the US. It will further erode its already shaky moral and political standing in the region.

Abdulkhaleq Abdullah is a professor of political science, Emirates University, UAE.