When the number of countries that UAE citizens can enter without a visa has reached 152 and is likely to increase; when the UAE passport is ranked the first in the Arab and Middle East region and 14th worldwide; when the UAE’s strategic partnerships are being consolidated in the East and West; and when UAE citizens all over the world feel at home — thanks to the special attention they receive from our embassies — then it becomes clear that these achievements are the fruits of an active diplomatic action, characterised by efficiency, professionalism and deep understanding of the nature of its objectives and assigned roles.

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This diplomatic action is led and planned by a dedicated minister, who has achieved major accomplishments without much fuss or publicity.

This man is Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation — the radiant face of the UAE foreign policy who leads national diplomacy towards constant successes and consciously and faithfully defends the UAE’s interests and presence in the regional and international arenas.

Shaikh Abdullah incarnates the country’s renaissance, values, entrenched principles and foundations, which were laid by the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and have been adopted and consolidated by our wise leadership headed by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

This has made the UAE a key element in the equation of regional and international relations.

Recipe for success

The great accomplishments that have been achieved by the UAE’s diplomacy, under the leadership of Shaikh Abdullah, do not come out of nowhere, but rather are based on his vision, philosophy and approach to diplomatic action, featuring numerous characteristics that represent a sure recipe for success and distinction.

First, Shaikh Abdullah is a worthy son of the School of Shaikh Zayed, placing the Emiratis — whether in the UAE or abroad — at the forefront of the leadership’s interests.

This school is embodied and followed by Shaikh Khalifa, his brother His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, as well as their brother Rulers of the other emirates.

Drawing inspiration from this school and implementing the philosophy of the wise leadership, Shaikh Abdullah addresses the happiness of UAE citizens as the first and foremost priority within UAE diplomatic action.

The happiness of UAE citizens is addressed by granting them access to countries around the world for work, tourism, medical treatment and education without a visa; by providing them comprehensive care outside the UAE and dedicating all the potentials of the diplomatic missions to serve them; and by rapidly responding to solve problems and overcome obstacles faced by UAE citizens anywhere in the world.

Serving with excellence

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is highly interested in serving citizens and ensuring their happiness, as significantly demonstrated through the ministry’s Strategy 2017-2021, launched in February 2017.

The strategy considers “serving with excellence the UAE’s citizens” as the first objective of the ministry, emphasising its keenness to make the UAE passport one of the five most powerful passports in the world by 2021.

Second, there is a deep understanding of the role of diplomacy in serving national development.

Thus, Shaikh Abdullah is keenly seeking to consolidate the UAE’s economic, trade and development ties with countries worldwide, ensuring their full protection and support, which makes UAE diplomacy a key element in the global advancement process that the UAE is witnessing.

This role reflects his full consciousness of the importance of these ties in serving the UAE development vision based on economic diversity and providing a multiplicity of resources in preparation for the post-oil era.

Third, there is a commitment to strengthen the UAE’s foreign relations, not only at the political level, but also by extending their scope to cover the cultural, social, media and intellectual levels.

Therefore, we notice that Shaikh Abdullah, during his foreign visits, does not confine himself to conducting conventional political meetings. He rather targets the businessmen, investors, studies and research centres, and parliaments, among others.

Enhancing the country's image

He directly addresses international world opinion through publishing articles in foreign and Arab newspapers, in which he conveys the UAE’s view regarding various issues. 

This has enhanced the country’s image in international public opinion, further adding to the UAE’s soft power, emphasising its balanced stances, civilisational initiatives and development achievements worldwide.

Fourth, he believes that effective diplomacy takes the initiative, seeks to seize opportunities with self-confidence and trust in its capabilities, accumulates relations and interests, and is conscious of the constantly changing international contours, which trigger shifts in positions, relations, orientations and alliances and requires extreme vigilance in the follow-up of developments and events.

This fact, represented by Shaikh Abdullah in terms of his effective and constant dynamism in various directions, was amply demonstrated during the diplomatic battle to host the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) in 2009.

I remember that he conducted intense shuttle diplomacy by visiting numerous countries and convincing them to support the UAE’s bid to host Irena’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi.

Key role

These efforts were ultimately crowned with success, despite vigorous competition from other countries.

Moreover, Shaikh Abdullah played a key role in the UAE’s fight to win the 2020 World Expo — thanks to his active diplomacy and investment in the years-long ties with officials from countries all over the world, which culminated in success, although the competing countries have a long history in diplomacy.

Fifth, Shaikh Abdullah has been conscious, since taking up his duties as Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2006, that achieving the ambitious goals of foreign policy and ensuring that this policy keeps abreast of the comprehensive development in the UAE requires a distinctive and competent working team.

He has sought to reach this goal through the restructuring of the ministry; developing clear and ambitious action plans and strategies; and according high importance to forming trained, qualified and competent national diplomatic cadres capable of movement, communication and understanding of the course of events regionally and internationally.

Since he was a student of Political Science at the United Arab Emirates University, I sensed that Shaikh Abdullah possessed the traits of ingenuity and distinction, and I expected him to have a brilliant future in serving the UAE.

Therefore, I was confident that he would be very successful in his missions — both, when he was minister of information and culture, and later when he became Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

In light of the great accomplishments he has achieved, the wide and interconnected global network of relations he has built and the extraordinary diplomatic approach he has adopted, Shaikh Abdullah represents a distinctive school of diplomacy, not only at the Arab or regional levels, but worldwide as well.

Professor Jamal Sanad Al Suwaidi is director general of the Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR).