As a largely desert nation, the UAE may not strike some observers as an obvious candidate for cutting-edge polar research. However, a closer look at Tuesday’s announcement that the Emirates is to work closely with Finland in better understanding the Arctic reveals the value of experience and expertise forged in the arid climate of the Arabian Gulf.
As part of a deal signed by Dr Abdulla Al Mandous, president of the World Meteorological Organisation and director general of the UAE’s National Centre of Meteorology, and Prof Petteri Taalas, director general of the Finnish Meteorological Institute, the two countries will exchange scientists and researchers. They will also embark upon joint projects and examine the effects of climate change on ecosystems and human societies.
It is a timely partnership – the Arctic is a strategically sensitive region undergoing profound change. Melting polar ice is set to open up new maritime transport routes and will allow greater access to its natural resources. According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic contains 13 per cent of the world’s undiscovered oil and 30 per cent of its gas. The region’s potential has caught the eye of many global players, including US President Donald Trump who first floated the idea of buying Greenland from Denmark as far back as August 2019.
Here, the UAE has a valuable contribution to make. Not only has the country learnt important developmental lessons from its often-harsh physical conditions, it has also built a formidable logistics network that connects it with countries and markets far removed from its immediate neighbourhood. Crucially, it also has decades of experience in harnessing its natural resources responsibly to support a prosperous, modern nation. Much of this has been achieved through collaboration rather than competition.
Such teamwork in safeguarding and exploring the world’ polar regions is becoming increasingly important in a rapidly changing world. The UAE’s commitment to this approach is borne out by the country’s growing number of polar partnerships.
November’s unveiling by the government of an Emirates Polar Programme was followed weeks later by the country’s decision to join the Antarctic Treaty System, an international agreement aimed at making sure the continent is used for peaceful purposes. The UAE built on this Antarctic interest in February when it signed an agreement with Argentina to work together on scientific research and environmental conservation. A similar deal with New Zealand was struck a few weeks later.
It is perhaps not surprising that Finland is the latest country to work with the UAE in opening up the Arctic. Writing in The National in 2023, Amna Fikri, the UAE’s Ambassador to Finland, noted how “as two small nations in difficult climates” both states “realised and appreciated the need for co-operation, dialogue and coexistence to reach innovative and evolving solutions to rising challenges”.
Ensuring a peaceful future in the Arctic is a good example of such finding “solutions to rising challenges” but countries working together in partnership remains the best way to meet them.
