UAE

06 Dec 2021; MEMO: Commander of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force, Major General Staff Pilot Ibrahim Nasser Al-Alawi said yesterday that the deal signed with France to purchase 80 Rafale combat aircraft will not replace the Emirates' talks to acquire F-35 jets from the US.

DUBAI, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will start a tour of Gulf Arab states on Monday ahead of an annual Gulf summit this month that comes amid crucial talks aimed at salvaging a nuclear pact between Iran and the West.

Prince Mohammed will visit Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television reported. Oman will be the first leg of the tour.

DUBAI, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates defence ministry said its purchase of French Rafale fighter jets would complement its planned deal to buy American F-35 warplanes, which has slowed due to Washington's concerns over Abu Dhabi's relationship with China.

The Gulf Arab state on Friday ordered 80 Rafales made by Dassault Aviation and 12 Caracal military helicopters made by Airbus Helicopters in an arms contract worth 17 billion euros ($19.2 billion). 

05 Dec 2021; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates' top national security adviser Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan will visit Iran on Monday to discuss expanding bilateral ties with the Islamic Republic, Iranian state media reported on Sunday, Reuters reported.

There was no immediate comment from the UAE foreign ministry about the visit of Sheikh Tahnoon, who is a brother of the country's de facto ruler Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed and chairman of state investor ADQ.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — France announced multibillion-euro deals Friday to sell fighter planes and combat helicopters to the United Arab Emirates, aiming to boost military cooperation with its top ally in the Persian Gulf amid their shared concerns about Iran.

The UAE is buying 80 upgraded Rafale warplanes in a deal the French Defense Ministry said is worth 16 billion euros ($18 billion) and represents the largest-ever French weapons contract for export. It also announced a deal with the UAE to sell 12 Airbus-built combat helicopters.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — After a monthslong hiatus, Iran has returned to negotiations in Vienna aimed at reviving its cratered nuclear deal with world powers. But Tehran isn’t slowing down the advances in its atomic program, further raising the stakes in talks crucial to cooling years of tensions boiling in the wider Mideast.

The case in point? Iran’s underground nuclear facility in Fordo.

02 Dec 2021; MEMO: Satellite images appear to show the UAE has opened an air bridge to provide the Ethiopian government military support in its fight against oppositionists in Tigray, Al Jazeera reported yesterday.

30 Nov 2021; MEMO: Turkish businessman and aid worker, Mehmet Ali Ozturk, who had been kept in Emirati custody since February 2018, was released on Monday, Middle East Eye reports.

According to the report, he was released as part of an annual pardon issued by UAE President, Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.

"I'm very happy to be back in my country, and be healthy and with my family," Ozturk said.

DUBAI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Iran, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan have signed a gas swap deal for up to 2 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year, Iranian state news agency IRNA reported on Sunday.

Under the swap deal, Iran will receive gas from Turkmenistan and deliver an equivalent amount to Azerbaijan at the Astara border, Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji told state TV.

"Turkmenistan will sell 5-6 million cubic metres of gas per day to Azerbaijan under the trilateral agreement signed ...in Turkmenistan," IRNA said.

27 Nov 2021; MEMO: Turkey is reportedly seeking to increase the foreign currency reserves possessed by its central bank, in a currency swap agreement with the United Arab Emirates that could amount to at least $5 billion.

According to the London-based news outlet Middle East Eye, which cited an anonymous senior Turkish official, Ankara and Abu Dhabi are in the process of coming to an agreement which would see the Turkish central bank receiving more foreign currency reserves to aid its economic crisis.