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General (Rtd) Corneliu Pivariu*
A sign of geopolitical evolution in the Middle East is the so-called “Arab Spring”the Yemen conflict, the threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program, and other global geopolitical developments dictated that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) take some important steps to modernize and improve its intelligence services starting in the middle of the past decade[2].
As evidenced by the evolution of modern intelligence services, a country with significant financial resources like the UAE is developing primarily its technological fields, such as signals intelligence and more recently artificial intelligence (AI).This is because it is relatively quicker and safer to obtain certain important results by using technological means to obtain information than by using information gathered by human resources (HUMINT), which takes longer to prepare and utilize these capabilities[3].
In addition to improving its intelligence technical capabilities, the UAE has continued to encourage the development of the private security sector, especially in the cyber domain, under relatively tight government control over these activities.Nevertheless, some slippage occurred, such as crow project[4] (Emirati firm Dark Matter was involved), which sparked an FBI investigation into the use of certain digital espionage activities leading to the arrest of foreign dissidents, in addition to being partly involved in the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, collecting information on Gulf monarchies and Information for other countries Middle East countries.
The UAE has further enhanced the capabilities of the National Defense Academy, which is currently led by Maj. Gen. Aqab Shahin Al Ali and Thomas Drohan as Dean (who was previously the Academy’s first Dean, John R. Ballard). Joel Hayword, whose name is recognized as a leading international expert in military strategy and the history of war, is a New Zealander and is mentioned in one of the Faculty’s departments.
The Abu Dhabi-based National Electronic Security Agency (established with US assistance in 2012) was renamed the Signals Intelligence Agency (SIA). The agency is the counterpart of the US National Security Agency, and its infiltration of ISIS in the UAE is one of its achievements. At the same time, there are suspicions that the Authority or other UAE intelligence services were involved in using the Tik Tok App to record certain conversations, relationships, meetings and photos of the UAE public.
For the five-year plan 2022-2026, the UAE approved a cyber budget of $79 billion, the largest in the country’s history. According to the 2020 Global Safety Index, the UAE ranks fifth in the world.
The Financial Intelligence Unit (UAEFIU) is another important agency, currently headed by Ali Faisal Ba’Alawi. The name dates back to 2019, and it’s actually a continuation of an organization established by the Central Bank of the UAE in 1998 as a special investigation unit for fraud and suspicious transactions, which was renamed the Anti-Money Laundering and Suspicious Cases Unit in 2002.
Although it is not part of the established intelligence services, it is worth mentioning that the UAE has established a Ministry of Artificial Intelligence, more precisely the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, headed by Omar Sultan al Olama.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE announced, “We want the UAE to be the most prepared country in the world in AI” and launched an ambitious 2031 plan to this end.
The plan will also have an important impact on the development of the UAE’s intelligence services.
Last but not least, we note the strengthening of relations with the intelligence services of other countries, especially Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel, the United States, and maintaining good relations with the intelligence services of countries such as Egypt, Russia, and China.
During the development of intelligence service activities, the UAE hired experts in this field from other countries, especially retirees from the United States, the United Kingdom and other countries, who were attracted by attractive salaries.
About the author: Corneliu Pivariu is a decorated two-star general in the Romanian Army (Rtd). For two decades he founded and directed one of the most influential geopolitics and international relations journals in Eastern Europe, the bilingual journal Geostrategic Pulse. General Pivariu is a member of the IFIMES Advisory Board.
This article only represents the author’s personal opinion and does not represent the official position of IFIMES.
[1] IFIMES – International Institute for the Middle East and the Balkans, headquartered in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has special consultative status with ECOSOC/UN in New York since 2018.
[2] look https://diplomatmagazine.eu/2018/02/03/united-arab-emirates-modernizes-intelligence-services/
[3] A general estimate is that it takes 10 to 15 years to train a HUMINT intelligence officer.
[4] See https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-spying-raven/
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