1971
December 2 Formation of the United Arab Emirates in Dubai (with the exception of Ras Al Khaimah, which will join on February 10, 1972). Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan is the first President.
1972
January 25 Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed, Ruler of Sharjah, is killed during a failed coup mounted by Sheikh Saqr bin Sultan, the former Ruler. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed succeeds him.
February 12 The Federal National Council meets for the first time.
December 2 The first National Day. The Egyptian diva Najat Al Saghira sings the new national anthem.
1973
May 19 The launch of the UAE dirham.
September 26 The first traffic lights come into operation in Abu Dhabi.
October 18 Sheikh Zayed announces the UAE will cut supplies of oil to the US as a protest against America's support for Israel in the October (Yom Kippur) war.
November 15 National Day celebrations are cancelled because of the Middle East crisis.
December 23 A new cabinet is formed with Sheikh Rashid as Prime Minister.
1974
January 31 Direct telephone service between Abu Dhabi and Dubai is inaugurated with a phone call between Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid.
September 17 Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad, Ruler of Fujairah, dies. His son, Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed , takes over.
December 2 National Day coverage includes the first experimental colour-television broadcast in the UAE.
1975
April 2 Al Maktoum Bridge in Dubai opens at a cost of £1 million.
December 21 The World Bank confirms that in 1974 the average income in the UAE is the highest in the world.
1976
February 1 Preliminary results of the UAE's first census show a population of 655,937 at the end of 1975.
May 6 Unification of the UAE armed forces.
November 22 Sheikh Zayed is unanimously re-elected President.
1977
January 1 Sharjah International Airport opens.
April 26 Female students are admitted to UAE University for the first time.
October 25 Saif bin Ghobash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, is shot dead at Abu Dhabi International Airport while meeting Syria's foreign minister, the intended target.
1978
January 9 A decree from Sheikh Zayed bans the hunting of birds and wild animals across the UAE.
April 8 Direct phone links begin between Sharjah and Fujairah.
April 12 The Red Crescent is officially established in the UAE.
August 15 Maternity leave of up to 45 days is introduced.
1979
February 24 Britain's Queen Elizabeth begins a state visit to Abu Dhabi and Dubai. In Dubai, she opens the World Trade Centre, the tallest building in the Middle East with a main tower of 149 metres, and inaugurates Jebel Ali Port.
1980
July 7 Seven Gulf countries - the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq and Iran - agree to establish the Regional Organisation to Protect the Marine Environment, based in Kuwait.
1981
February 21 The death of the Ruler of Umm Al Quwain, Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid, is announced. His son, Sheikh Rashid, succeeds him.
May 25 The UAE meets with five other countries - Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar - to form the Gulf Cooperation Council.
September 6 The Ruler of Ajman, Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, dies. His son, Sheikh Humaid, succeeds him.
1982
January 2 Abu Dhabi International Airport opens at its current location, taking over from Al Bateen airport as the main passenger hub.
1983
September 23 A Gulf Air flight from Pakistan to Abu Dhabi crashes on approach after a bomb explodes in the baggage compartment, killing all 112 passengers and crew.
1984
February 8 The UAE ambassador to France, Khalifa Ahmed Abdulaziz, is shot dead by an unknown assailant.
1985
October 25 Emirates Airline begins operations out of Dubai. Its first destinations are in Pakistan and India.
1986
May 6 The Federal National Council acknowledges a recession in the UAE, brought on by a drop in oil prices, and calls on the Government to diversify the economy.
October 15 Sheikh Zayed is unanimously re-elected President of the federation for a further five years by the Supreme Council.
1987
October 26 UAE announces that its oil reserves amount to 200 billion barrels, and expects them to become the second largest in the world.
1988
July 18 The Iran-Iraq War, which has dominated the Gulf for most of the 1980s, enters its final weeks after both countries accept a UN Security Council resolution to end the conflict. The UAE, as one of the non-permanent members of the Security Council, sends notes to both countries to express satisfaction.
1989
February 11 Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan, brother of Sheikh Zayed and former ruler of Abu Dhabi, dies at the age of 83.
1990
June 9-19 The UAE national football team plays in the Fifa World Cup in Italy, losing to Colombia, West Germany and Yugoslavia by a cumulative score of 11-2.
October 7 Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, dies and is succeeded by his son, Sheikh Maktoum.
1991
February 24 The UAE joins a 34-nation armed coalition and sends troops to liberate Kuwait following the Iraqi invasion.
1992
August 24 Iran escalates tension over the islands Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunb, seized from the UAE in 1971, by requiring Emirati visitors to have visas.
1993
March 6 The number of federal ministries is now almost double the 12 created in 1972. New ministries include Transportation and Higher Education.
1994
September When Iraqi forces again move towards the Kuwait border, the UAE sends ground troops to the country.
1995
June 6 The UAE pledges military and humanitarian aid to Bosnia's Muslims.
1996
May 20 At a meeting of the Federal Supreme Council, the provisional constitution is made permanent and Abu Dhabi is officially named the nation's capital.
1997
November The dirham is pegged to the US dollar.
1998
March 12 Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey begins a dig on the Marawah island and finds fireplaces used by late Stone Age hunters; carbon-dating indicates this is the earliest inhabited site yet found in the country.
1999
September 30 The Burj Al Arab is finished in Dubai, in time for a December opening and millennium celebrations.
2000
April 15 Construction is completed on Jumeirah Emirates Towers: at 56 storeys, the tallest building in the Middle East.
2001
September 22 In the wake of September 11, the UAE severs its relations with Afghanistan's Taliban government.
2002
February 16 Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Dubai, announces the creation of Dubai International Financial Centre as part of a strategy to secure a place in global finance.
2003
March 1 The UAE is the first Arab country to call publicly for Saddam Hussein to step down.
November 5 The first Etihad Airways flight takes off, a ceremonial trip between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. The inaugural commercial flight will be between Abu Dhabi and Beirut.
2004
August 17 Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum wins gold in men's double trap shooting at Athens Olympics, the UAE's first Olympic medal.
November 1 Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi becomes first woman in the Government when she is appointed Minister of Economy and Planning.
November 2 (a date corresponding to Ramadan 19, 1425) It is announced that Sheikh Zayed, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, the Father of the Nation, had died.
November 3 Sheikh Zayed's sons and close family were joined at his funeral by presidents and rulers from around the region and beyond: Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Morocco, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Syria, Jordan, Yemen and Kuwait … their heads of state prayed over the deceased leader shrouded in the flag of the UAE.
2005
February 25 Emirates Palace opens in Abu Dhabi.
August 10 Sheikh Khalifa signs Law No 19, which formally abandons the old property regime and permits the sale of freehold rights by citizens and, in certain areas, 99-year leases by foreigners.
2006
January 4 Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, dies during a visit to Australia. His brother, Sheikh Mohammed, succeeds him.
December 16 About 6,500 Emiratis are eligible to vote for the FNC in the UAE's first election.
2007
March 6 France and the UAE sign an agreement to open a branch of the Louvre on Saadiyat.
2008
January 21 Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque opens to the public.
September 1 Manchester City Football Club is taken over by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed's Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment.
November 4 The Dubai Mall opens.
2009
January 2 Sheikh Rashid bin Ahmed, Ruler of Umm Al Quwain, dies. His son, Sheikh Saud, succeeds him.
September 9 At 9:09:09pm, Sheikh Mohammed inaugurates the first section of Dubai Metro's Red Line, serving 10 stations.
2010
January 4 Dubai inaugurates the world's tallest skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa.
October 27 Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, dies at the age of 92. Sheikh Saud bin Saqr succeeds him as Ruler.
2011
April 23 The launch of Yahsat's first commercial telecommunications satellite.
September 24 Almost 130,000 Emiratis are eligible to vote in the second poll to elect members of the FNC.
2012
July 15 The first day of operation for a pipeline that runs 403 kilometres from the oilfields of Al Gharbia to the waters off Fujairah, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
