Diplomatic Briefing
Your exclusive news aggregator handpicked daily!Archive for UAE
Newsline: Fiji to open embassy in UAE
Fiji is to open an embassy in the United Arab Emirates in August. The interim foreign minister, Ratu Inoke Kubuabola, is in Abu Dhabi to identify suitable locations for the chancery and residences for the diplomats. Ratu Inoke says opening an embassy reflects the government’s wish to expand its relations beyond its traditional partners.
http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=68207
Newsline: British envoy calls on UK expats to respect UAE dress code
The British Ambassador to the UAE has hailed the UAE as great place to live and raise children, and commended the country’s pro-active approach in clamping down online predators that could very well harm unwitting children. Dominic Jermey OBE spoke about some of the headline hitting issues that affect expats in this country. He urged expats and tourists to understand dress codes in the country, and advised parents to be more vigilant in protecting their kids from the possible harm emanating from the internet. In general, Jermey finds the UAE “to be a great fun and a great place to bring up children”. “It is also a fabulous place to be the British ambassador because the UK has this unique history and relationship with the UAE. And there are incredible contrasts from the traditional to the ultra-modern and that makes the UAE unique.
http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/british-envoy-calls-on-uk-expats-to-respect-uae-dress-code-2012-05-13-1.458488
Newsline: Photographers spend night in Abu Dhabi jail for embassy pics
An Indian accountant, a Spanish architect and a Filipina nurse all ended up at the UAE Supreme Court yesterday for taking photographs of foreign embassies in Abu Dhabi. The Indian accountant and the Filipina nurse and her husband were all jailed for a night after being arrested for taking photos of what they thought were “pretty buildings”. The Filipina had photographed the Iranian and Iraqi embassies, the Indian had snapped the US embassy and the Spaniard, who was not detained, had clicked a picture of the Iranian embassy. Each had their passport and cameras taken and were not allowed to leave the country before yesterday’s hearing, where each was fined Dhs200. The national security section of the supreme court decided to deal with them all on the same day. It is illegal in the UAE to photograph embassies.
http://www.7daysindubai.com/Photographers-spend-night-Abu-Dhabi-jail-embassy/story-16013990-detail/story.html
Newsline: Iranian FM Summons Swiss Envoy
The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Swiss Ambassador to Tehran to voice strong protest against the US officials’ interfering remarks on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s recent visit to the Iranian island of Abu Musa in the Persian Gulf. The US has no diplomatic relations with Iran and US affairs in the country are dealt with via the Swiss embassy in Tehran. US State Department Spokesman Mark Toner said that the United States supported “a peaceful resolution” over the three islands and backed the UAE call for the issue to be resolved through talks or at the International Court of Justice. The Iranian Foreign Ministry official told the Swiss ambassador that Abu Musa Island, like all other Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf, is an inseparable part of the sacred soil of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He further emphasized, “The Iranian president’s visit to Abu Musa is just like his numerous visits of the other provinces of this country.” He considered the comments made by that US official “interference in internal affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, categorically condemned them, and asked for respective appropriate explanation from the US administration. The ambassador of Switzerland to Tehran, too, after hearing Tehran’s official objection on the matter announced that he would convey the matter to the US government and announce their respective reply upon receiving it. After Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited Abu Musa last week, the UAE recalled its ambassador from Tehran in protest at Ahmadinejad’s official trip to the Iranian island. Then, the foreign ministers of the six-nation PGCC held an emergency meeting in Doha on Tuesday and issued a statement against the Iranian President’s visit to the Iranian island.
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8101300331
Newsline: British Embassy in Dubai advises newcomers
The British Embassy in Dubai has put together a series of video clips of long-time expats in Dubai offering advice to newcomers, be they holidaymakers or new expats. According to the embassy, it’s a “new and fresh” way of getting the message out in an attempt to reduce the number of Brits getting into trouble in the UAE. The tips include nuggets of advice such as: Bring a pashmina or jacket because the air-conditioning can be very cold; don’t bounce a cheque or you could end up in jail; and don’t go mad at the Friday brunches or you’ll use up a week’s worth of cash and calories in four hours. Expats are used to life in Dubai when:
- You leave your car engine running while you nip to the shops.
- You can’t speak Arabic, but you can get by in a mix of Tagalog, Hindi and Urdu.
- You’ve forgotten how to put petrol in your own car.
- You take photos when you see clouds, and Tweet about it when it rains.
- You don’t know how to operate your car’s windscreen wipers.
- You don’t think it’s odd that getting your car’s annual registration done requires an entire morning off work and 48 passport photos.
- It seems almost pornographic when you see wine for sale in the supermarket back home.
- You arrive somewhere and wonder why the valet’s not taken your car.
- You think 38˚C is perfectly pleasant weather for a picnic.
Newsline:Yemen’s Saleh apologizes to UAE for embassy blockade
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh apologized to theUnited Arab Emirateson Monday after gunmen loyal to Saleh surrounded the UAE embassy in Sanaa during diplomatic talks a day earlier, the UAE state news agency said.U.S., European and Gulf ambassadors stranded at the embassy during the talks had to be lifted out by helicopter on Sunday, the day Saleh refused to sign a Gulf Arab-brokered deal to transition him out of power. “Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan received a phone call from Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh in which he apologised for what the country’s embassy in Sanaa was exposed to yesterday,” the news agency said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/23/us-yemen-emirates-idUSTRE74M1XN20110523
Newsline: Western, Arab Diplomats Rescued From Yemen Embassy
Western and Arab diplomats were whisked out of the embassy of the United Arab Emirates inYemenon Sunday as armed supporters of Yemen’s embattled president surrounded the mission, a Yemeni government official said. The envoys were driven to Ali Abdullah Saleh’s presidential palace for a short meeting after two Yemeni government helicopters landed on the embassy grounds in Sanaa, said the Yemeni government official, who was not authorized to speak to the media. But despite earlier reports, the diplomats were not taken away in the helicopters, the official said. Pro-Saleh gunmen surrounded the embassy to protest efforts byPersian Gulf states to ease Saleh from office in a deal with opposition parties — an agreement that appeared to be tottering Sunday night. U.S. Ambassador Gerald Feierstein said earlier that the ambassadors ofSaudi Arabia,Kuwait,Omanand theUnited Arab Emirates, as well as those ofBritainand the European Union, were blockaded inside. Yemeni security forces were seen near the embassy but did not try to disperse the protesters, many of whom were armed with machine guns, pistols or batons. A State Department official, who declined to be named speaking about a sensitive ongoing situation, said it appeared that the Yemeni government was behind the demonstration, which witnesses said broke up after the diplomats left. Government spokesman Abdu Ganadi said the protesters were “expressing their views peacefully,” and that officials from the ruling General People’s Congress were also inside the embassy.Y emen, a key al-Qaida battleground and U.S. ally, has been roiled by protests for most of the year amid the background of anti-government demonstrations across much of the Arab world. Saleh has ruled the country for 33 years. He announced Sunday night that he would only sign the agreement if leaders of the opposition alliance JMP — who signed the pact Saturday — re-ink the deal in a public event at his presidential palace. The president warned that the country faced civil war if they refused.
Consular affairs: UAE stops issuing work visas, residency permits for Egyptians
Emirati authorities have halted the issuing of work visas and residency permits to Egyptians resident in the country, according to official Emirati sources. The decision was prompted by the change in Egyptian foreign policy andEgypt’s recent rapprochement withIran, the sources added. The Emirati Directorate of Residence and Foreigners’ Affairs, meanwhile, attributed the decision to “the lack of stable security authorities inEgypt, which could be referred to for enquiries about people wishing to work in the UAE.” The same sources said the decision is intended “to protect the country and prevent unwanted people from causing a direct or indirect threat to the stability of the country.”
Newsline: Pakistanis furious as UAE consulate fails to meet demand for passports
Pakistanis living in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have expressed annoyance over the indifferent attitude of their government to requests to ease passport renewal services. Applicants gathered outside the Consulate General in Dubai and the Embassy in Abu Dhabi at midnight to collect tokens for their turn to submit their applications. All tokens are distributed at 7 a.m. while people, especially families, who go to the missions during normal working hours have found themselves failing to submit their applications. Tariq Iqbal Soomoro, the Consul-General, said he felt sorry for hundreds of Pakistanis waiting in queues. He said he was doing the best he could with the available space and staff.
Newsline: Iraq parties call to close Bahrain and UAE embassies
Sadr Front’s Ahrar Bloc believes the call of Iraqiya Bloc MP Haidar Al Mulla to close Iranian Embassy in Iraq is alarming and gives way for sectarian strife. Ahrar MP Youssef Al Hajim affirmed that Mulla’s criticism of parties calling to close Bahrain and UAE embassies in Baghdad expresses his personal view and does not speak for Iraqiya bloc. Iranian Embassy did not act against Iraq, nor Iran invaded a neighboring country or interfered in the economy and politics of other nations, Hajim argued. Calls to close Bahrain and UAE embassies came on account of freedom oppression in Bahrain while the Iranian government never resorted to such actions, Hajim said.
