Iran talks key in shaping Middle East's new order, says Dr Anwar Gargash

A functional working relationship with Iran is crucial to the future of stability in the Middle East, a senior UAE official has said.

Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE President, said the UAE was reaching out to all sides in the region in a bid to reduce tensions.

“We are reaching out to friends and also adversaries to build bridges,” he said in a panel session on the opening day of the World Government Summit, at Expo 2020 Dubai.

“We are not going to agree with everything they want to do. The Middle East is not only about Iran and Israel.

“Our whole intention is to find a way to functionally work with Iran and ensure there is an agenda for stability and prosperity in the region that includes Iran, and others.

“The other important element is that energy is coming back as a major component of Middle East issues.”

Although relations with the Syrian government and the rest of the Arab world had been restored, no decision has been made on its involvement with the Arab summit scheduled for November in Algeria.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary General of the League of Arab States, recently said the Syrian regime was unlikely to be readmitted due to a lack of consensus from other nations.

Dr Gargash said issues between democracy and authoritarianism were not binary, with the pandemic highlighting the pros and cons of good governance.

“Every democratic attempt in the Arab world has turned ideological or tribal, so I’m not sure it is something we can work out successfully.

“But we do need governance, and that needs a lot of components. This is perhaps in the middle of the two.”

At the same session titled “Are we ready for a new world order?", Frederick Kempe, president and chief executive of the Atlantic Council, said legitimacy in governments accepted by citizens was the most effective way to build societies.

“The issue is having an effective government and whether people consider it legitimate,” he said. “Democracy is one way to achieve it, but there are other ways.

“Legitimacy is gained by governments that can deliver the goods and effectiveness to their people.

“People want freedom, human rights and governments to ensure order, safety and health care.

“This new era of technological change is getting fast all the time, and they can be used to enlighten and deliver better government services.”

It's up to you to go green

Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.

“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”

When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.

He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.

“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.

One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.

The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.

Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.

But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”

Know your Camel lingo

The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home

Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless

Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers

Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s

Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival

Iran talks key in shaping Middle East's new order, says Dr Anwar Gargash

Goal is to create 'functional' relationship with Tehran to improve stability for the region

It's up to you to go green

Know your Camel lingo

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