In Geopolitics Today: Monday, August 22nd
UAE and Iran Restore Diplomatic Relations, The Arctic as a Region of Increased Great Power Attention, and other stories.
UAE and Iran Restore Diplomatic Relations
The United Arab Emirates has said that its ambassador to Iran, Saif Mohammed Al Zaabi, would return to Tehran in the coming days, effectively restoring full diplomatic relations. According to the UAE’s foreign ministry, the announcement is in line with Abu Dhabi’s efforts to strengthen relations with Iran in order “to achieve the common interests of the two countries” more than six years after ties were downgraded with Tehran.
In 2016, the Emiratis withdrew Zaabi in solidarity with their Saudi allies over a mob attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran after Saudi Arabia executed a prominent Shiʿa sheikh. Last week, Emirati and Iranian officials sought to mend ties as they agreed to work towards improving the Iran-UAE relationship. Warming ties come after the UAE, along with three other Arab countries — Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan —normalised ties with Israel in September 2020. Yet despite a normalisation of ties between the UAE and Iran’s arch-nemesis Israel, Emirati and Iranian officials seem to have escalated efforts to boost trade relations and reduce the threat from militant forces in the region.
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The US Continues to Transfer Advanced Weapons to Ukraine
The United States has confirmed that a new $775 million military aid package is headed to Ukraine. Washington will give Scan Eagle surveillance drones, mine-resistant vehicles, anti-armour rounds and howitzer weapons to Ukraine’s armed forces in order to assist them in regaining territory by mounting a counteroffensive against Russian forces.
The latest package of U.S. aid to Ukraine includes AGM-88 high-speed anti-radiation missiles, which will allow Ukrainian forces to target Russian radars. The 15 ScanEagles surveillance drones the US is sending to Ukraine are a small, long-endurance, low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle used for reconnaissance and target acquisition. Other arms transferred include 16 M777 howitzers with 36,000 artillery rounds and 1,000, tube-launched, optically tracked anti-tank missiles. Moreover, the military aid package also includes 40 mine-resistant vehicles for mine-clearing, 50 Humvees and 1,000 Javelin anti-tank weapons. This latest weapons shipment is the 19th of its kind and is a part of the $40 billion in security and economic assistance passed by the US Congress.
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The Arctic as a Region of Increased Great Power Attention
Remote and inhospitable, the Arctic is difficult to access, explore, support operations in, extract resources from, or defend. As advancements in technology and receding ice begin to ease the costs of Arctic operations, many countries are reconsidering their approaches to the region. The Arctic is a strategically important region that provides access to major theatres, and it is becoming an increasingly important focus for states embroiled in strategic competition.
For decades, the conventional wisdom has pointed to the Arctic as a region of peace and cooperation, separated from the competition and conflict found in other parts of the world. Today, the major powers are not so naïve as they recognize Arctic strategy-making as part of their national interests around the globe. This means that the Arctic region provides opportunities and poses threats to those seeking to benefit from the region. With increased focus by non-Arctic powers, the Arctic as a region is quickly gaining strategic importance as leaders recognize its role in any future conflict.
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Egypt’s Forces Makes Gains Against Militants in Western Sinai
Egyptian Army troops and allied fighters are said to have made progress in driving out Islamic State militants from the Sinai Peninsula. ontrol as the terrorist group tries to move its command centre there. While the Egyptian army has not released any statements about ongoing battles in the town of Gilbana, some tribes that assist the army published several videos of troop movements in the area.
The Egyptian armed forces and its allied proxies have managed to reduce the capabilities of IS militants active in the Sinai Peninsula over the past two years. After deploying tens of thousands of troops from all Egyptian military branches against the militants, Cairo has successfully dried out the militant's supply routes and ammunition depos, and worked to dismantle a network of smuggling tunnels on the border between Sinai and the Palestinian Gaza Strip. Given the proximity of IS militants to the economically critical Suez Canal, Cairo has an imperative to ensure security in the surrounding areas.