UAE

DUBAI, March 16 (Reuters) - The United Nations received only $1.3 billion in pledges on Wednesday towards a $4.27 billion aid plan this year for war-torn Yemen, where a humanitarian drive had seen funding dry up even before global attention turned to the conflict in Ukraine.

"We hoped for more and it is a disappointment we didn't get pledges from some we thought we might hear from," U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths told a one-day pledging event co-hosted by Sweden and Switzerland.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrived in the Gulf on Wednesday for meetings in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia aimed at easing skyrocketing gasoline prices, as the West grapples with economic headwinds from Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Johnson will be seeking greater investments in the U.K.’s renewable energy transition and ways to secure more oil to lessen British dependence on Russian energy supplies.

DUBAI, March 15 (Reuters) - Iran's foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian arrived in Moscow on Tuesday and expressed hopes his visit would lead to Russian support for a "good, stable and strong nuclear deal," Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency reported.

Amirabdollahian said Russia had so far supported talks in Vienna to revive a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major powers.

The talks are at risk of collapsing after a last-minute Russian demand forced world powers to pause negotiations for an undetermined time, despite having a largely completed text.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The state-owned utility in Dubai announced plans Tuesday to list a sliver of its worth on the emirate’s stock exchange.

The announcement comes as the sheikhdom in the United Arab Emirates tries to revitalize its Dubai Financial Market exchange, which has seen several firms delist amid recent economic woes.

The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority said it would offer 3.25 billion shares on the stock market, which it put as equivalent to 6.5% of its overall worth. It did not provide an initial price for the shares.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia on Saturday executed 81 people convicted of a variety of crimes, including killings and belonging to militant groups, in the largest mass execution conducted by the kingdom in its modern history.

The total number of those put to death surpassed that of the January 1980 mass execution of those convicted of the seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, which saw 63 people beheaded.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The European Union’s foreign policy chief said Friday that “a pause” was needed in ongoing talks over Iran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers, blaming “external factors” for the delay.

The comments by Josep Borrell come as a roadmap appeared imminent for the U.S. to rejoin an accord it unilaterally withdrew from in 2018 and for Iran to again limit its rapidly advancing nuclear program. And while Borrell didn’t elaborate, it also comes as Russia last week tied the ongoing negotiations to sanctions Moscow faces over its war on Ukraine.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — FlyDubai on Monday reported a $229 million profit last year as the state-owned budget carrier saw its business rebound from the coronavirus pandemic and as regulators allowed it to again fly the Boeing 737 Max.

FlyDubai nearly doubled its revenue in 2021 to over $1.4 billion, compared to just $773 million the year before in the thick of pandemic restrictions and after two crashes saw the 737 Max grounded. In 2020, the airline saw a loss of $194 million.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A global body focused on fighting money laundering has placed the United Arab Emirates on its so-called “gray list” over concerns that the global trade hub isn’t doing enough to stop criminals and militants from hiding wealth there.

The decision late Friday night by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force puts the UAE, home to Dubai and oil-rich Abu Dhabi, on a list of 23 countries including fellow Mideast nations Jordan, Syria and Yemen.

05 March 2022; MEMO: Lenders in the United Arab Emirates are expected to return to pre-pandemic levels of profitability in the next 12-18 months amid stronger net income, S&P Global reports.

According to the report, banks in the UAE are expected to record an increase in lending this year as the Arab world's second-largest economy charts a strong recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new report.

02 March 2022; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates has temporarily suspended a visa waiver for Ukrainian citizens, Kyiv's Embassy in the Gulf Arab State said, at a time thousands of people are fleeing war in Ukraine, Reuters reports.

The UAE decision went into effect on Tuesday, the Embassy said in a notice to citizens on its Facebook page, without providing a reason. Emirati authorities did not respond to a request for comment.