Description
Book SynopsisWhy did the Gulf monarchies and the UAE in particular - avoid the upheavals and challenges of the Arab uprisings? This book examines how the UAE survived the waves of regional unrest. It departs from attributing regime survival to rentier state theory and instead offers a more nuanced approach to understanding the pillars of regime legitimacy upon which the UAE now rests. In doing so, the book sheds light on the transformation of the UAE from a quietist state, which relied almost entirely upon an overseas security guarantor, to an assertive regional power in its own right.
Written by an Emirati author who understands the internal dynamics of the country, the book examines the state''s proactive foreign policy and the changing domestic and regional environment influencing its decisions. The book argues that the UAE leadership encouraged a new national identity to evolve amid the pressures of modernity, particularly at a time when young Emiratis had access to information beyon