While continuing to strengthen its ties with the US, the UAE joined China’s Belt and Road Initiative in 2019 and has signed an array of trade agreements with Asian states including India, Indonesia and South Korea. They have become a leading investor in Africa, investing billions across the continent.
The UAE has been particularly adept at leveraging strong ties with the West to further cultivate these relationships. Many of its flagship initiatives have been hand-in-hand with the West: from the Abraham Accords to major investments in India through the I2U2 grouping, to the US-UAE Partnership for Accelerating Clean Energy in emerging economies.
This has allowed the UAE to position itself as something of a ‘global Switzerland’ – a (mostly) neutral actor that courts ties and investment from all the global superpowers. Wealthy Russians feeing sanctions have headed to Dubai and Abu Dhabi with their assets, while the less well-off have headed to there to avoid conscription. All are adding to an economy already booming due to raised oil prices after the war and are additionally reinforcing the UAE’s image as a neutral safe haven.
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For emerging diplomatic powers, the successes of these ‘middle powers’ offer invaluable lessons. Pragmatism and flexibility are among the most valuable strategic principles in a world without a single arbiter, and the ability to deftly leverage great power rivalry could serve states well in the years to come. While these principles may not represent anything new, the new multipolarity means they will likely be the dominant feature of global foreign policy in the coming decades.
Christopher Phillips is a professor of international relations at Queen Mary, University of London. He is the author of The Battle for Syria, available from Yale University Press, and co-editor of What Next for Britain in the Middle East, available from IB Tauris.