US, UAE eye military collaboration, joint exercises with India

The US and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are eyeing the possibility of military collaboration, including joint exercises, with India following Washington’s designation of the West Asian country as a “major defence partner”.

The US announced the UAE’s recognition as a “major defence partner” – a status accorded so far only to India – in a joint statement issued after a meeting between President Joe Biden and his UAE counterpart Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the White House on Monday.

The designation acknowledged the US and UAE’s deepening security partnership, cooperation in advanced technology and acquisition, and a shared interest in preventing conflict and de-escalation, the joint statement said. This will help enhance defence cooperation and security in the Middle East, East Africa and the Indian Ocean regions.

“This unique designation as a Major Defense Partner will allow for unprecedented cooperation through joint training, exercises, and military-to-military collaboration, between the military forces of the United States, the UAE, and India, as well as other common military partners, in furtherance of regional stability,” the joint statement said.

Biden and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed said they are committed to close and sustained cooperation between their militaries.

India, the US and the UAE are also members of the I2U2 grouping, along with Israel. This grouping has worked on various projects focused on connectivity, food security and renewable energy. India and the US have a robust and growing military partnership that includes the joint development of military technology and equipment. At the same time, India’s military and security cooperation with the UAE has grown in recent years.

Biden and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed also discussed progress on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) launched at the G20 Summit in New Delhi in 2023 along with the leaders of India, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union.

They reaffirmed that the corridor – connecting India to Europe by ship-to-rail connections through the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel and Europe through Greece – will “generate economic growth, incentivise new investments, increase efficiencies and reduce costs”, the joint statement said.

They also agreed that the corridor will enhance economic unity, generate jobs, lower greenhouse gas emissions and “enable the transformative integration of Asia, Europe, and the Middle East”.

“They underscored that this transformative partnership has the potential to usher in a new era of international connectivity to facilitate global trade, expand reliable access to electricity, facilitate clean energy distribution, and strengthen telecommunication,” the joint statement added.

Work on the IMEC has been impacted by the Israel-Hamas conflict, with many countries involved in the initiative adopting a wait-and-watch initiative. However, some of the countries, such as India and the UAE, have continued their work on individual elements of the ambitious corridor.