UAE leader meets Macron, Johnson among dignitaries
ABU DHABI－The United Arab Emirates' new president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, met his French and British counterparts on Sunday as world leaders offered their congratulatory messages and paid tribute to his late predecessor.
French President Emmanuel Macron, on the maiden foreign trip of his second term, was the first of a number of Western leaders to meet Sheikh Mohamed, the oil-rich Gulf state's de facto leader who was elected as the third president of the UAE on Saturday, succeeding the late president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who died on Friday at the age of 73.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met Sheikh Mohamed soon after, and offered his commiserations on Sheikh Khalifa's death and his congratulations on the presidency, an official told Agence France-Presse. Queen Elizabeth II also sent her congratulations.
US Vice-President Kamala Harris was leading a high-profile delegation to visit the UAE on Monday, in a bid to ease tensions and show support as relations between the countries have strained under US President Joe Biden. The trip marks the highest-level visit by Biden administration officials to oil-rich Abu Dhabi.
The delegation includes Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, CIA Director William Burns and climate envoy John Kerry, among others.
More dignitaries filtered through the Abu Dhabi airport's marbled presidential terminal on Monday. Britain's Prince William came Monday to pay tribute, marking his second visit to the emirate so far this year.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian flew to the emirate to offer condolences.
The high-level visits reflect the increased influence wielded by the UAE in the Middle East and further afield due to its wealth, oil resources and strategic location.
During Macron's visit to Dubai last December, France clinched its biggest overseas order for its Rafale combat jet－an $18 billion deal that came as a planned US sale of advanced F-35 fighter jets to the UAE stalled.
Johnson said his visit to mourn Sheikh Khalifa showed "the deep ties which unite our countries will continue through our cooperation and friendship".
This marked Johnson's second trip this year to the desert sheikhdom, a leading investor in the United Kingdom and key export market after Britain's exit from the European Union.
In March, Johnson met with Sheikh Mohamed to persuade him to boost oil production and soothe energy markets after Russia's special military operation in Ukraine－ultimately to no avail.
Sheikh Mohamed, 61, was the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi for 18 years. He also served as deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces. Sheikh Mohamed is the third son of UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who passed away on Nov 2,2004.
He held various positions in the UAE military, including in the Amiri Guard and the UAE Air Force. In January 1993, he was appointed chief of staff of the UAE Armed Forces and held the rank of lieutenant general from January 1994 to January 2005, when he was promoted to the rank of general.
In December 2004, he became the head of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, or the government of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Agencies - Xinhua
