UAE President appoints eldest son Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi
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The President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, on Wednesday named his eldest son, Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. The latter should thus become the next leader of the rich oil country of some 10 million inhabitants.
The path seems clear for the United Arab Emirates. Its president, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, has named his eldest son, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed bin Zayed, crown prince of Abu Dhabi, the richest of the federation’s seven emirates, state media reported on Wednesday (March 29). State.
The ruler of Abu Dhabi has traditionally been the president of the federation since it was founded in 1971. As a result, the new crown prince should, in the future, become the next leader of the Emirates.
Current leader Mohammed bin Zayed, known as ‘MBZ’, was named crown prince when his father died in November 2004, when his half-brother Sheikh Khalifa became president of the Emirates. and ruler of Abu Dhabi.
Diminished by a stroke in 2014, Sheikh Khalifa had retained his official titles, but MBZ had begun de facto ruling both the emirate and the federation for years.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed had finally officially become President of the Emirates and ruler of Abu Dhabi when Sheikh Khalifa died in May 2022.
A key player in the Middle East
His appointment as head of state had sparked speculation about his succession as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Khaled or Tahnoun ben Zayed, a brother of MBZ, were approached for the role.
MBZ has also appointed several of his brothers to key positions.
One of them, Manchester City football club owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, 52, has been named vice-president of the United Arab Emirates. He exercises this function jointly with the ruler of Dubai and Prime Minister of the federation, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum.
Tahnoun bin Zayed, national security adviser and chairman of the sovereign wealth fund ADQ, was named deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, along with Hazza bin Zayed, another brother of the president.
A rich oil country with some 10 million inhabitants, the United Arab Emirates have experienced a diplomatic and military rise in recent years that have placed them at the heart of the geopolitics of the Middle East.
Allies of Saudi Arabia and the United States, the Emirates of “MBZ” were thus the first Gulf country to normalize relations with Israel in 2020.
“MBZ” is also widely believed to be the one who sent Emirati troops to Yemen in 2015, as part of a Saudi-led coalition against Houthi rebels.
Considered particularly hostile to the popular uprisings of the Arab Spring of 2011, “MBZ” can count on the wealth of Abu Dhabi, which holds 90% of the oil reserves of the Emirates, to assert its power in the region and show its support for certain regimes. , like that of the Egyptian Abdel Fattah al-Sissi.
With AFP
