Washington on Friday said it would “significantly upgrade” the UAE’s export status in recognition of its defence support, including during the war with Iran.
The Department of Commerce said it would give the UAE “enhanced favourable treatment”, making it easier to export and transfer US military equipment, satellites, spacecraft, artificial intelligence and energy technology.
The measure also removes restrictions on the UAE’s drone programmes.
It comes “in recognition of the UAE’s status as a US Major Defence Partner and its support in advancing US national security interests, including Operation Epic Fury,” the Commerce Department said.
“This special status ... is warranted in light of the ongoing US-UAE military partnership and the UAE’s commitment to preventing the diversion and misuse of sensitive US technology.”
A document filed in the US Federal Register specifies the significance of the change in the UAE's status.
“The UAE government and approved commercial entities will also have licence-free access to advanced computing items, consistent with the May 2025 US-UAE Artificial Intelligence Co-operation framework,” the filing read in part. It also highlighted the historic ties between the two countries.
“The UAE is also a major source of foreign direct investment in the US, valued at over $1 trillion, and benefiting US economic sectors such as artificial intelligence, aviation, metals and energy.”
The filing adds that more licence exceptions will now be available.
Afra Al Hameli, the UAE's director of strategic communications, welcomed the development with the US.
"This marks a significant milestone in the growing depth of the strategic partnership," she posted on X.
The UAE has pushed to position itself as a regional leader in AI. In 2019, the country announced the establishment of a university dedicated to the technology, the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence.
Two years earlier, the UAE was one of the first countries to appoint an AI minister, Omar Al Olama, who is now Minister of State for AI, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications.
In 2025, during President Donald Trump's visit to the UAE, plans for a 5GW UAE-US AI Campus were announced.
During congressional testimony in February, the US undersecretary of state for economic affairs, Jacob Helberg, spoke highly of the Abu Dhabi AI company G42.
“They agreed to build a common operating picture that could allow American policymakers to actually have total transparency and assurance that the clusters in the UAE used and owned by G42 are not being accessed improperly,” Mr Helberg said.
“The UAE is an incredibly important partner,” Mr Helberg added. “They are a major investor who has pledged to invest $1.4 trillion in the US.”
After a lengthy effort to win US permission to obtain powerful Nvidia chips deemed to be essential for AI build-out, the UAE received its first shipment of the semiconductors in June.
Bilateral trade between the US and the UAE reached $34.4 billion last year, according to the Office of the US Trade Representative.
