The friendship between the American and Emirati peoples is one that has been present for decades. In 2019, President Sheikh Mohamed, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, met the family of Pat and Marian Kennedy, American doctors who founded the emirate’s Oasis Hospital in 1960, a clinic that went on to deliver thousands of Emirati babies at a nascent time in the country’s rapid modern development.
The US-Emirati relationship forged in such austere times has since developed into a 21st-century partnership characterised by deep co-operation in trade, security, energy and diplomacy. The arrival in Abu Dhabi of US President Donald Trump on Thursday afternoon, and the warm welcome afforded him by UAE President Sheikh Mohamed — as also, significantly, the UAE's highest civilian honour, the Order Of Zayed bestowed on Mr Trump — reflect the importance of that relationship for both countries. "Your relationship and mine is already at the highest level and can't get better. It's an honour to be with you," Mr Trump told President Sheikh Mohamed at Qasr Al Watan last evening.
The US leader’s visit to the UAE is the third act in what has been a purposeful and dynamic visit to the Gulf. A profusion of bilateral deals worth billions of dollars has been accompanied by some unique moments. Among these was Mr Trump’s Riyadh address to the US-Saudi Investment Forum, in which he chided “western interventionists” and praised Gulf countries for “developing your own sovereign countries, pursuing your own unique visions, and charting your own destinies”. His visit to Qatar – the first official visit by a US President – was as productive as it was historic, resulting in what the White House said was an estimated $1.2 trillion “economic exchange”.
But if Mr Trump’s visit to Doha was a historic first, his presence in the UAE is the latest in several visits by serving and former US presidents that have underlined the two nations' enduring ties.
In 1990, former president Jimmy Carter made a private three-day trip to the Emirates, meeting the UAE's Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, to work together on eradicating preventable disease in the developing world. In January 2008, Geroge W Bush became the first sitting US president to come to the country, his two-day visit representing a milestone moment for the long-time partners.
It is a partnership that has grown further following Mr Trump’s return to office. Since January, his administration has agreed a series of deals and investments involving the UAE, including March’s announcement by the White House that the Emirates had pledged a $1.4 trillion “investment framework” for projects related to artificial intelligence infrastructure, semiconductors, energy and manufacturing.
Sources speaking to The National this week have hinted at more developments to come, with UAE and US officials having been "actively engaged" in the lead-up to Mr Trump’s visit in hopes of advancing a broad AI and technology partnership.
Such engagement is good for the UAE and the US – two countries that still have much to offer each other. But this thriving relationship is also important for the wider Middle East, where the need for dialogue to solve intractable problems – such as the war in Gaza – is more pressing than ever. So long as the US-Emirati bond continues to deepen, both countries will be able to play their part not only in working towards prosperity for their peoples but in working to make this region a better place.
