1952-1971 since 1990







The United Arab Emirates, 1971-1990


Independence . Britain had announced her plan to withdraw from the Gulf in 1971. A Federation of Arab Emirates, consisting of the seven Emirates which make up the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain was created in 1969 and was scheduled to be released into independence in 1971. When the moment for independence arrived, Bahrain and Qatar went separate ways; Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Sharjah and Umm al Qiwain established the United Arab Emirates; Ras al Khaimah joined in 1972.

Administration . The UAE are a federation of monarchies. The presidency is held by the ruler of Abu Dhabi, the post of PM by the ruler of Dubai. Political parties are not permitted.

Foreign Policy . The UAE joined the UN and the Arab League in 1971; it was OPEC member since 1967.
In 1981 the UAE joined the Gulf Cooperation Council. During the Iran- Iraq War (1980-1988), the GCC members pursued a policy of neutrality until 1986; then they switched to supporting Iraq.
The UAE established diplomatic relations with the USSR in 1971, with the PR China in 1984.

The Economy . In 1971, the UAE produced 51 million metric tons of crude petroleum, in 1990 101.9 million (IHS pp.362, 364). The high level of oil prices during the First Oil Crisis (1973-1981) resulted in a windfall of revenues for the UAE. During the Iran-Iraq War, oil production reduced from 89.8 million metric tons in 1979 to 55.5 million metric tons in 1984 (IHS p.364).
Emirates Airline was established in 1985.
Because direct trade between India and Pakistan was banned, the port of Dubai emerged as a transshipment center.
The bottling of mineral water from Masafi Oasis began in 1976.
In 1972, Mina Zayed (Abu Dhabi) was declared a free port; in 1985 Jebel Ali (Dubai) a free zone. Abu Dhabi International Airport was opened in 1982.

Social History . The estimated population of 1971 was 0.279 million; the census of 1980 counted 1.04 million, the estimate of 1991 1.90 million (Lahmeyer). The majority of the UAE residents in 1991 were foreigners.

Cultural History . The UAE National Olympic Committee was formed in 1979, and recognized by the IOC in 1980. UAE athletes participated in the Summer Olympics of Los Angeles 1984, Seoul 1988. The UAE Football Association was established in 1971. The UAE national football team participated in the World Cup in Italy in 1990.
Because of the high population element of foreign residents, the urban centers of the UAE in practicality are bilingual Arab and English.






EXTERNAL
FILES 		Articles Emirates Airline, Gulf Cooperation Council, Zayed bin Sultan al Nahayan, Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahayan, Maktoum ibn Rashid al Maktoum, Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, UAE at the 1984 Summer Olympics, UAE at the 1988 Summer Olympics, UAE National Football Team, UAE Football Association, Jebel Ali, National Olympic Committee, from Wikipedia
Masafi, The Leading Producer of Bottled Mineral Water in the Gulf
Mina Zayed, from Global Security
Introduction, from Abu Dhabi International Airport
DOCUMENTS UAE Statesmen : World Statesmem, by Ben Cahoon
Historical Population Statistics, UAE, from Population Statistics at Univ. Utrecht
REFERENCE Frauke Heard-Bey, From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates, Dubai : Motivate Publishing (1982) 2004 [G]
IHS : International Historical Statistics : Africa, Asia & Oceania 1750-2000, edited by B.R. Mitchell, Basingstoke : Palgrave MacMillan 4th ed. 2003
Article : Dependent States : Trucial States, in : Britannica Book of the Year 1971 pp.267-269, 1972 p.245 [G]
Article : United Arab Emirates, in : Britannica Book of the Year 1973 p.704, 1974 pp.688-689, 1975 p.705, 1976 pp.681-682, 1977 p.685, 1978 p.689, 1979 p.688, 1980 p.688, 1981 pp.681-682, 1982 p.685, 1983 p.684, 1984 p.683, 1985 pp.497-498, 803, 1986 pp.492, 801, 1987 pp.462-463, 769, 1988 pp.420, 721, 1989 pp.420, 721, 1990 pp.437, 737 [G]
Article : Trucial States, in : Statesman's Yearbook 1970-1971 pp.1221-1223 [G]
Article : United Arab Emirates, in : Statesman's Yearbook 1975-1976 pp.1451-1453, 1976-1977 pp.1449-1453, 1978-1979 pp.1269-1274, 1979-1980 pp.1279-1284, 1980-1981 pp.1275-1280, 1981-1982 pp.1282-1287, 1983-1984 pp.1279-1284, 1984-1985 pp.1276-1281, 1985-1986 pp.1277-1282, 1986-1987 pp.1276-1280, 1987-1988 pp.1280-1284, 1988-1989 pp.1284-1288, 1989-1990 pp.1290-1294, 1990-1991 pp.1293-1297 [G]
Article : United Arab Emirates, in : The World in Figures 1st ed. 1976 pp.202-203, 2nd ed. 1978 p.203, 4th ed. 1984 p.203 [G]
Article : Persian Gulf States, in : Americana Annual 1972 p.529 [G]
Article : Persian Gulf States - United Arab Emirates, in : Americana Annual 1973 pp.532-533 (on events of 1972) [G]


This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted on June 13th 2007

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