Moscow Weighs Saudi Arabia, UAE as Venue for Possible Putin-Trump Summit

But some Russian diplomats and intelligence officials reportedly oppose holding the summit there due to the countries’ close ties with the U.S. military and intelligence services. While Saudi Arabia and the UAE have not joined Western sanctions or criticized Russia’s invasion, their leaders have maintained diplomatic ties with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Neither country is a member of the International Criminal Court, which issued an arrest warrant for Putin in 2023 over alleged war crimes. Putin visited both Saudi Arabia and the UAE later that year. Russia has already ruled out NATO member Turkey as a potential summit venue, citing its role in failed peace talks held in Istanbul in March 2022 (Read more at Moscow Times).

US Lawmakers Say UAE Still Sending Arms To Sudan Fighters

Two US lawmakers said Friday that the United Arab Emirates has violated its promises and kept arming Sudan's Rapid Support Forces, which Washington has accused of genocide. The two Democrats last month agreed to lift objections to a $1.2 billion arms sale to the UAE by the then administration of fellow Democrat Joe Biden after the White House said the Gulf power assured it was "not now transferring any weapons" to the paramilitary group (Read more at Barrons).

Trump announces $20B US investment by Emirati businessman

Emirati billionaire Hussain Sajwani promised a $20 billion investment in the booming U.S. data center industry in the coming years, he and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced on Tuesday at Trump's home in Palm Beach, Florida. The investment by DAMAC Properties in the United Arab Emirates is intended to highlight Trump’s personal ability to attract new money for big projects (Read more at AP).

UAE in Talks With US, Israel About Provisional Government for Post-War Gaza

The United Arab Emirates has discussed with Israel and the United States participating in a provisional administration of post-war Gaza until a reformed Palestinian Authority is able to take charge (Read more at USNews).

UAE Promises Not to Arm Sudan Paramilitaries as US Warns of Arms Export Ban

Two lawmakers said the United Arab Emirates made the promise to address their concerns and that as a result, they would drop their attempt to block $1.2 billion in arms sales to the Gulf power (Read more at Defense Post).

Trump family and allies to bask in Gulf crypto industry's euphoria

Speakers include the president-elect's son Eric and billionaire Steve Witkoff, the new White House envoy for the Middle East and co-founder of World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform launched in September that Donald Trump and his family helped form (Read more at MSN).

ََA US Asset Manager to Open Abu Dhabi Office

U.S. investment management firm Polen Capital said on Monday it has received preliminary approval for a license to operate from the ADGM, Abu Dhabi's financial centre, as it looks to capitalise on growth opportunities in the region. Rising company registrations, the appeal of sovereign wealth funds, and the relative ease of obtaining a license to operate compared with other financial centres have enhanced ADGM's attractiveness for global firms. Polen Capital, which had approximately $63 billion in assets under management as at Sept. 30, will join other global asset managers and hedge funds in setting up in the ADGM (Read more at USNews).

US clears export of advanced AI chips to UAE under Microsoft deal

The US government has approved the export of advanced artificial intelligence chips to a Microsoft-operated facility in the United Arab Emirates as part of the company's highly-scrutinized partnership with Emirati AI firm G42. The approved export license requires Microsoft to prevent access to its facility in the UAE by personnel who are from nations under U.S. arms embargoes or who are on the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security's Entity List (Read more at DecanHerald).

US lawmakers seek to halt weapons sales to UAE, citing Sudan

US Senator, Chris Van Hollen, has introduced legislation seeking to halt American weapons sales to the United Arab Emirates until the United States certifies that the UAE is not arming the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan. “The UAE is an important partner in the Middle East, but the United States cannot sit idly by as it aids and abets the humanitarian disaster in Sudan – we must use our leverage to try to bring this conflict to a peaceful resolution,” Van Hollen said in a statement (Read more at Middle East Monitor).

COP29: US-UAE climate-friendly farming partnership grows to $29 billion

The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate) was launched in 2021. Under the program, governments, companies, and non-government organizations pledge funding for projects to reduce the climate impact of agriculture and to make farming more resilient to the impacts of global warming (Read more at Yahoo News).

DOJ charges an alleged Iranian murder-for-hire plot against Trump

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed the need to stop the fighting in Sudan and the need to support efforts to form a civilian government during a Friday call with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the State Department said in a statement (Read more at CNBC).

Abu Dhabi Firms Launch Investment Fund to Tokenize U.S. Treasury Bill ETFs

The fund aims to attract investors from the Gulf, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Abu Dhabi firms Realize and Neovision Wealth Management have unveiled an investment fund that acquires units of U.S. Treasury bill-focused exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and tokenizes them. Known as the Realize T-Bills Fund, the fund will acquire shares of Blackrock’s low-cost ishares and State Street’s SPDR ETFs (Read more at Bitcoin.com).

Gulf states lobby US to stop Israel from bombing Iran's oil sites

As part of their attempts to avoid being caught in the crossfire, Gulf states including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar are also refusing to let Israel fly over their airspace for any attack on Iran and have conveyed this to Washington. The moves by the Gulf states come after a diplomatic push by Tehran to persuade its Gulf neighbors to use their influence with Washington amid rising concerns Israel could target Iran's oil production facilities (Read more at Daily Sabah).

UAE is doubling down on US ties: Foreign minister

Being recognised as a major defence partner was a welcome development that mirrored a confidence in US policy, says Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed (Read more at Khaleej Times).

Biden Designates UAE as a Second Major Defense Partner After India

Moreover, Biden and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan called for "urgent, unhindered" humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza and shared their commitment to a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in a statement after their meeting. Their joint statement touched on the Gulf state's involvement in the Sudan conflict, with both stressing that there was no military solution to the war, which has triggered the world's largest displacement crisis. They also underscored plans to deepen cooperation on space exploration, clean energy and artificial intelligence, where the UAE has launched ambitious plans drawing interest from U.S. geopolitical rival China (Read more at Ariana News).

UAE Seeks Closer AI, Tech Ties in Biden Talks

The UAE, a wealthy oil producer and longtime security partner of the U.S., is hoping for greater access to American technology to build its own advanced tech industry. G42, the state-backed technology company, has already secured a $1.5 billion investment from Microsoft, partnered with chipmaker Nvidia and is using supercomputers built by Cerebras Systems. But the U.S. has been concerned about the UAE's warm relationship with China and placed restrictions on exports of some American technology to the UAE and other Middle Eastern states over concerns that it could be shared with Beijing (Read more at USNews).

UAE to ask Trump to fulfil F-35 deal if he's re-elected

If the U.S. did approve the transfer, the UAE would be only the second Middle East state after Israel to operate F-35 fighters. Trump had signed off on the deal in the final days of his presidency in 2021 but the UAE suspended talks by the end of the year, unable to agree terms with the Biden administration (Read more at AOL).

Microsoft’s deal expected to transfer key US chips and AI technology to UAE

That entails the export of crucial components of AI technology such as model weights, a crown jewel of AI systems that determine how powerful they are. There were safeguards to protect the company’s technology and prevent it from being used by Chinese entities to train AI systems. But those measures have not been made public, and some US lawmakers question whether they are adequate (Read more at Arab Weekly).

US Air Force Deploys ULTRA Glider-Like Drone in Middle East

Though the exact location was not disclosed, sharp eyes online revealed that the photos were taken from the Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. Interestingly, the base serves as the home for the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing and previously housed the US Air Force’s RQ-4 Global Hawk drones. It is believed to be connected to intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (Read more at Defense Post). 

US energy secretary to visit Saudi Arabia and UAE next week

"The visit is a continuation of long-standing engagement between the US and this region," the official said. "Specifically, for the Department of Energy, it will move forward work both countries are doing on climate cooperation and to diversify the energy economy." (Read more at Yahoo Finance)

UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia shared intelligence with U.S. on Iranian attack

Furthermore, the Arab countries opened their airspace to fighter jets, shared radar surveillance information or, in some cases, provided their own forces to help. Jordan said it would allow U.S. and other countries' warplanes to use its airspace, even using its own aircraft to help intercept the Iranian threats (Read more at I24).

UAE behind US plan to build pier on Gaza coast

The Emirati government reportedly threatened to suspend work on an Arab–Israeli land route if aid does not reach Gaza. US plans to construct a temporary port on the shores of Gaza are reportedly the result of Emirati pressure on Washington (Read more at The Cradle).

US export ban on UAE, Turkey, others for supporting Russia's war in Ukraine

Of the new entities listed, 4 from the UAE, 16 from Turkey, 63 were from Russia, and  8 from China. The action taken one day before the 2nd anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine means banning U.S. shipments to them (Read more at USNews).