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Riyadh goes it alone on oil cutsCrude oil and natural gas rebounded this morning after Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest exporter, announced a million-barrel-per-day production cut at this weekend’s OPEC Plus summit in an effort to boost sagging energy prices. But the negotiations that led to the move — and a more complicated adjustment of the cartel’s production quotas — hint at the tensions between many of the world’s top crude-producing countries, with global oil prices in the balance. The United Arab Emirates saw its production quota grow, after years of lobbying for such a move, while other countries had their targets reduced. The arrangement that emerged on Sunday was a Riyadh-led compromise, which Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, the Saudi oil minister, called “a Saudi lollipop” that is meant to sweeten prices for oil traders. Though the cut is meant only for July, it could be extended.

Persons: Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Organizations: United, United Arab Emirates Locations: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, OPEC, United Arab, Saudi

☆ U.A.E. Says It Exited U.S.-Led Naval Force
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Benoit Faucon | Dion Nissenbaum | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones

☆ As Iran Seizes Tankers in Gulf, U.A.E. Pulls Back From U.S.-Led Maritime Force
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Vivian Nereim | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The United Arab Emirates announced on Wednesday that it had stopped participating in a maritime security force led by the United States, the latest hint of tensions between Washington and key Persian Gulf allies who complain that America has not done enough to protect them from Iranian threats. The unusual public statement came after Iran seized two commercial tankers in waterways near the Emirates in quick succession over the past two months. Emirati and Saudi officials have repeatedly expressed frustration with U.S. policy toward Iran. “They were unhappy with the Americans, and when the U.A.E. is not happy, they are very decisive,” said Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, an Emirati political scientist.

Persons: ”, Abdulkhaleq Abdulla Organizations: United Arab Emirates, Emirates, Emirati Foreign Ministry, Combined Maritime Forces, Saudi Locations: United States, Washington, America, Iran, Persian

ABU DHABI—Last year, the United Arab Emirates became a hub for Russian money and cut oil production, boosting Moscow’s war chest and drawing protests from Washington. The country’s leader skipped a call from President Biden as the U.S. rallied support for Ukraine. Now, Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has been invited for a state visit to Washington, and the U.S. and U.A.E. are hammering out a formal agreement on defense and commerce after jointly committing $100 billion for clean-energy projects—a major Biden administration goal. All the while, the Emiratis have expanded ties with Russia and another U.S. rival, China.

☆ Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. Scoop Up Russian Oil Products at Steep Discounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Benoit Faucon | Summer Said | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As Russia scours the globe for buyers of its energy products, it is finding eager trade partners in an unlikely place: The oil-rich petrostates of the Persian Gulf. Since Western sanctions over the war in Ukraine cut off Russia from many of its established trading partners, state companies from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have stepped in to take advantage of discounted prices for Russian products, according to oil executives and industry analysts.

Atul Gupta and his brother Rajesh allegedly leveraged their close ties to South Africa’s government to build a business empire. South Africa’s justice minister said that the United Arab Emirates had refused the extradition of two India-born brothers who were allegedly at the center of a large government corruption scandal in Africa’s most developed economy. South African authorities say that Atul and Rajesh Gupta for years leveraged their close ties to former President Jacob Zuma and other senior officials in the ruling African National Congress to build a business empire that once stretched from media to mining. Failure to try them in South Africa would be a big blow for President Cyril Ramaphosa , who took over in 2018 after the ANC ousted Mr. Zuma largely because of his alleged ties to the Gupta brothers.

☆ Saudi Arabia and U.A.E. Clash Over Oil, Yemen as Rift Grows
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Summer Said | Stephen Kalin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Middle East leaders at a regional event in January. DUBAI—When Abu Dhabi hosted a summit of Middle East leaders at a seaside palace in January, there was a glaring absence: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman . Prince Mohammed and U.A.E. President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan steered clear of each other’s events intentionally, Gulf officials said, even as the rulers of Jordan, Egypt, Qatar and others attended. The snubs exposed a growing rift between neighboring U.S. security partners that for years marched in lockstep on Middle East foreign policy.

☆ Justice Department Hiring Dozens of New Prosecutors to Enforce Russian Sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Dylan Tokar | Ian Talley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

The new prosecutors will work with corporations to investigate sanctions and export control evasion, and also bring criminal charges against companies when they commit violations, he said. Some of the additional prosecutors are new hires, while some are being reallocated from different sections, according to officials. The U.A.E.’s enforcement of sanctions differs between the emirates, officials say, as the separate governments treat the sanctions with varying degrees of compliance. For their part, Justice Department officials have pointed to a growing nexus between their work on corporate crime and national security. In addition to hiring more prosecutors, Mr. Olsen said the counterintelligence section would also hire a lawyer to advise on investigations involving corporations.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, the West formed what looked like an overwhelming global coalition: 141 countries supported a United Nations measure demanding that Russia unconditionally withdraw. South Korea Indonesia Israel Thailand Japan Saudi Arabia Philippines Afghanistan CambodiaBy contrast, Russia seemed isolated. Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus Syria Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus SyriaBut the West never won over as much of the world as it initially seemed. But like many other African countries, South Africa appears careful to balance its growing ties with Russia against maintaining a relationship with the West. Others that provided Ukraine with military support have declined to impose economic sanctions on Russia.

☆ U.A.E. Names Oil Chief to Run COP28 Climate Summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Summer Said | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

DUBAI—The United Arab Emirates named the chief executive of its national oil company as the president of this year’s United Nations climate summit, drawing criticism from environmental activists. The Gulf state said Thursday that Sultan al-Jaber, chief executive of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., or Adnoc, would be tasked with framing the agenda of the COP28 summit in Dubai, which opens at the end of November. Mr. Jaber, a top Emirati technocrat, is also the country’s minister for industry and technology and special envoy on climate change, playing a leading role in the country’s move to finance and produce more renewable and nuclear energy.

☆ Biden administration brings WNBA star Brittany Griner home for the holidays after 10 months in Russian custody
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Biden administration is bringing WNBA star Brittney Griner, who has been detained in Russia for 10 months, home for the holidays after months of negotiation. "She is safe, she is on a plane, she is on her way home," U.S. President Joe Biden announced Thursday. Cherelle Griner was present and able to speak with Brittney when Biden made the call from the Oval Office. Notably absent from the swap was another American detained in Russia, Paul Whelan, who has been in Russian custody since 2018. "We've not forgotten about Paul Whelan," Biden said.

☆ U.A.E. President Visits Qatar in Sign of Regional Thaw
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Rory Jones | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

DUBAI—United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan on Monday visited Qatar for the first time since launching a three-year boycott of its Gulf neighbor, a sign of thawing regional tensions as the FIFA World Cup is held there. spearheaded a yearslong effort economically and physically to isolate Qatar beginning in 2017 and ending last year. Sheikh Mohammed’s visit illustrates how the U.A.E. has pioneered a series of moves to mend ties across the region and chart a neutral foreign policy after mixed success intervening in regional conflicts.

☆ Israel’s OurCrowd to Launch AI Business in U.A.E.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Dov Lieber | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

TEL AVIV—Israeli venture-capital firm OurCrowd is investing tens of millions of dollars to start an artificial-intelligence business in the United Arab Emirates, in the latest sign of deepening commercial ties between the two neighbors after they established diplomatic relations two years ago. OurCrowd said it is partnering with Abu Dhabi Investment Office, a government entity responsible for facilitating investment in the U.A.E. capital, to expand its operations in the country, which will see its team grow to 60 employees from four over the next four years.

☆ U.S. Imposes New Sanctions Over Iran Drone Sales to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on an Iranian drone maker that officials said supplied Russia with weapons used in Ukraine. One of SAIRC’s drone models has been used in attacks targeting civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Odessa and the Kharkiv region of Ukraine, the Treasury Department said. The department also imposed sanctions on Success Aviation Services FZC and i Jet Global DMCC, two United Arab Emirates-based air transport companies it said worked with an already sanctioned Iranian company to help ship drones, personnel and equipment from Iran to Russia. government provided cooperation, the Treasury Department said. The European Union imposed sanctions on SAIRC last month.

☆ Before OPEC+ Production Cut, Saudis Heard Objections From a Top Ally, the U.A.E.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Summer Said | Dion Nissenbaum | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, shown in December, is the U.A.E.’s national security adviser and brother of its president. ABU DHABI—The United Arab Emirates sent its national security adviser to Riyadh in September on a secret mission to dissuade Saudi Arabia’s crown prince from pushing an oil-production cut that would anger the U.S. and risk painting oil producers as Russian allies, people familiar with the trip said. The Emirati official, Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a brother of the U.A.E.’s president, met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and echoed Washington’s view that reducing output wasn’t economically necessary and warned of geopolitical fallout, the people said.

☆ Trump Ally Thomas Barrack Testifies at His Own Foreign Lobbying Trial
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Thomas Barrack said he didn’t do the bidding of United Arab Emirates officials and was acting on his own business and political interests. Thomas Barrack , a close Donald Trump ally accused of illegally lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, testified at his own trial Monday, telling a federal jury in Brooklyn that his association with the former president proved disastrous for his investment business. Mr. Barrack, former chairman of investment firm Colony Capital Inc., is accused of using his ties to push Mr. Trump’s campaign and administration toward policies that benefited the U.A.E.

☆ Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin Testifies in Defense of Trump Ally
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testified Thursday in support of a Donald Trump ally on trial for alleged illegal lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, telling jurors that defendant Thomas Barrack at one point pushed a policy stance contrary to the interests of the small Gulf state. Mr. Mnuchin, who was treasury secretary during President Trump’s term in office, appeared in a Brooklyn federal court as a defense witness for Mr. Barrack, former chairman of investment firm Colony Capital Inc. who served as an informal adviser to Mr. Trump’s campaign. Federal prosecutors allege Mr. Barrack secretly worked to steer Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign and administration toward policies that U.A.E. officials favored.

☆ Oracle to Settle SEC Foreign Bribery Charges For the Second Time
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Mengqi Sun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

Oracle Corp. agreed to pay more than $23 million to settle allegations it violated antibribery laws for the second time, following a 2012 settlement, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Tuesday. The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits U.S. persons and entities from giving or offering anything of value to foreign public officials to win or keep business. units also used the funds to pay for foreign government officials to attend technology conferences that violated the company’s policies and procedures. As part of the SEC settlement, Oracle didn’t admit or deny the allegations. Austin, Texas-based Oracle in 2012 agreed to pay about $2 million to the SEC to settle a previous set of FCPA charges.

☆ Tracking Coronavirus Vaccinations Around the World
▼ + stars: | 2021-01-29 | by ( Josh Holder | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

69.7% of the global population Received at least one dose Received additional dose Fully vaccinated Partially vaccinatedMore than 5.35 billion people worldwide have received a dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, equal to about 69.7 percent of the world population. of population Doses administered Vaccinated Fully vaccinated Additional dose Per 100 people Total Additional doses World 70% 64% 31% 164 12,588,986,878 2,407,736,567 Samoa >99% >99% 38% 255 503,069 74,882 Brunei >99% * >99% * 76% 291 * 1,259,753 * 328,836 * U.A.E. · Source: Vaccinations data from local governments via Our World in Data. The data is compiled from government sources by the Our World in Data project at the University of Oxford. Circles are sized by country population.

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