United Arab Emirates–United Kingdom relations are the relations between the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The UAE has an embassy in London while the UK maintains an embassy in Abu Dhabi and is unique in having another Embassy in Dubai, albeit with Her Britannic Majesty's Consul-General to Dubai and the Northern Emirates, as opposed to a separate British Ambassador. The UAE-UK relations have been described as a "special relationship".
History
Before the country's formation in 1971, the emirates which currently constitute the UAE were once all part of the Trucial States and independent sheikhdoms allied with the United Kingdom, assigned as British protectorates by the General Maritime Treaty of 1820. The main purpose of this relationship was to ensure the passage to British India, by excluding the pirates who then raided the country's coast on the Persian Gulf. An agreement between the British and the ruler of Sharjah in 1932 led to the construction of a fortified airfield known as Al Mahatta Fort, to allow a stop on the Imperial Airways route to Brisbane, Australia. Royal Air Force aircraft were subsequently allowed to refuel at Sharjah in World War II. Al Mahatta Museum is a reminder of the BOAC and other flights that used to frequent the UAE's first airport.
The Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs noted upon signing Abu Dhabi 2010 in the presence of Her Majesty and His Highness Sheikh Khalifa that 100,000 British citizens lived in the Emirates and over a million visited each year for business and leisure. Beside this each country share consistently high rates of mutual trade and investment.
Political ties
Both Great Britain and the Emirates have historic association in terms of co-operation in the areas of law enforcement, defence, training and military technology. This was reflected recently in the signing of an agreement to co-operate in the development of the Emirates' own nuclear energy plants in the future. In November 2018, the United Kingdom foreign minister Jeremy Hunt threatened the UAE with "serious diplomatic consequences" after it sentenced a British academic Matthew Hedgesto life in prison for allegedly spying for the UK government.
People
Well-known Britons include Edward Henderson, who wrote a book "Arabian Destiny" on his career in the region after World War Two developing oil concessions and learning about local politics both within and beyond his role in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. Uniquely on his retirement he was invited to assist in establishing the national archives in Abu Dhabi by His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founding President of the UAE from 1971 and Ruler of Abu Dhabi prior to then. Other well-known authors with experience of the Emirates include Shirley Kay "Mother Without a Mask" and Jeremy Williams OBE "Don't They Know It's Friday?". An 18th century masterpiece painting, titled ‘Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy’, was gifted to the UAE by the United Kingdom as a token of goodwill and a symbol of enduring friendship between both countries on July 2019. The painting was painted bu Ary Scheffer in 1856 and is from the Lubin Family Private Collection. The painting was presented by the British Ambassador to the UAEPatrick Moody to Dr Hamed bin Mohamed Al Suwaidi, the chairman of Abu Dhabi Arts Society. Dr. Al Suwaidi suggested that the painting may be showcased at the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
