Reinforcing national identity through military service

The introduction of compulsory military service for all male Emiratis will not only strengthen the country’s military capacity, but also have a much wider range of benefits that can only grow over the years.

The immediate benefit will be for all young Emirati men to learn how to serve the nation with honour and pride. It will lead to an increased expression of loyalty to the country and its leaders and of the spirit of dedicated public service that being an active member of the armed forces builds.

It also means that a whole generation of Emiratis will learn new skills. There is the obvious health benefit of basic training as harsh drill sergeants force basic levels of fitness on unhappy youths doubling about the parade grounds and struggling over assault courses. But other skills are also learnt, which will be with the young men for the rest of their lives and society will benefit as a young men learns the importance of working together in teams. And those who take more senior positions will learn leadership skills as well.

Such national service also reinforces patriotism and national identity. The armed forces are a federal institution that answer to the entire country, drawing their recruits from all over the UAE. This means that young Emiratis will have the opportunity to live and work with their peers from all over the country, forging friendships outside their immediate family or emirate circles. In addition, the military training that these young people will receive will remain with them for the rest of their lives, offering the UAE a military reserve that will be an important asset

It is important to note that the UAE is unlikely to go to war. This new responsibility of national service is not about responding to some external threat, but about building a sophisticated sense of national duty.

The UAE armed forces have served in Afghanistan and Libya, but they have also taken their skills into other areas, like running the UAE’s highly professional refugee camps in many of the world’s worst trouble spots.