VZCZCXRO4189
OO RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHAD #0779/01 1341120
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 141120Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8929
RUENAAA/SECNAV WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1178
RHMFIUU/COMUSNAVCENT
RHWSMRC/MCF01 SACCS USCINCCENT MACDILL AFB FL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 000779 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARP; NEA/PPD; NEA/RA; INR/R/MR; PA; INR/NESA; INR/B; 
RRU-NEA 
IIP/G/NEA-SA 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE; NSC 
SECDEF FOR OASD/PA 
USCINCCENT FOR POLAD 
LONDON FOR ERELI 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP KMDR TC
SUBJECT:  SPECIAL MEDIA REACTION: AHMADINEJAD VISITS THE UAE 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY:  "Gulf News" called Ahmadinejad's visit an opportunity 
to "open a new page in relations."  "Khaleej Times" opines that the 
visit marks a "clear shift in greater Middle East politics, one 
involving a break from the traditional status-quo-maintenance to a 
proactive resolution of lingering crises and disputes."  End 
Summary. 
 
¶2.  Under the headline "Red letter day in UAE-Iran ties" an unsigned 
editorial in Dubai-based English language daily "Gulf News" 5/14: 
"The landmark visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the 
UAE can, and should, open a new page in the relations between the 
two countries."  The visit comes at a trying time in the region. 
Iran's nuclear issue could explode any time with the United States 
making its intentions clear that it will do everything in its power, 
including military force, to stop the Islamic republic's 
controversial program.  However, the UAE-Iran ties, although 
historic and strong, have had their lows due to the continuous 
Iranian occupation of the three Emirati islands.  The UAE has done 
all it can to solve the dispute. UAE leaders repeatedly called on 
Iran to either get into direct talks or accept international 
adjudication. Iran continues to refuse both offers." 
"The bilateral ties are vital to both countries.  That shows in the 
exceptional reception the Iranian president got at the airport 
yesterday.  President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al 
Nahyan and His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, 
Vice-President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, were at the 
airport along with a number of senior officials to greet the 
visiting leader." 
"The UAE is also Iran's biggest trading partner and Iranian non-oil 
imports from the UAE amounted to $7.67 billion in the Iranian year 
to March 2006, some 20 per cent of its total.  Also, the UAE has 
always shown its keenness to strengthen relations with its Muslim 
neighbour and refused to join the US-led efforts to isolate Tehran. 
In a March interview, Shaikh Khalifa said the UAE would never allow 
its territory to be used for "hostile activities" against Iran." 
"Therefore, it is incumbent upon Ahmadinejad, the first Iranian head 
of state to come here in the UAE's history, to use the occasion to 
open a new chapter in our relations. And a genuine effort to address 
the islands issue would be a good beginning." 
 
¶3.  Under the headline "Welcome, Ahmadinejad" an unsigned editorial 
in Dubai-based English language daily "Khaleej Times" 5/14: 
"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the UAE confirms 
two important developments in the changing political landscape of 
the Middle East." 
"Firstly, the cordial start to the tour and the friendly and 
constructive negotiations quickly laid to rest some international 
observers' apprehensions about the polity's ability to successfully 
carry out a 'sensitive juggling act' - having sociable relations 
with both Washington and Teheran.  Secondly, on a slightly larger 
scale, it bolsters analyses seeing a clear shift in greater Middle 
East politics, one involving a break from the traditional 
status-quo-maintenance to a proactive resolution of lingering crises 
and disputes." 
"That the visit of Iranian president comes at the heels of the Saudi 
brokered Hamas-Fatah truce, Ahmadinejad's historic journey to Saudi 
Arabia, the Arabs uniting on the GCC front to throw the peace-deal 
ball in Israel's court and rising anti-Western sentiment in Arab 
capitals, does not come across as much of a surprise.  In fact, it 
is conformation that unprecedented (mostly West-provoked) jolts to 
the region's fabric have moved the collective leadership to finally 
drop hopes of foreign powers moving to heal regional wounds. 
Instead, they have decided to overcome as many regional rigidities 
as possible, and that too quickly, so a unified outlook can precede 
a yet more concrete change of course - one that realizes the 
political as well as economic potential of the region." 
"And in that exercise, the UAE shall play one of the most crucial 
roles. The UAE stand out as a severe rebuttal to East-West clash. 
In a short span of time, they have carved one of the world's most 
powerful business and tourist attractions right out of the sand of 
the desert.  In a world where terrorist threats and border security 
concerns battle with free trade deals and ultimate growth figures in 
world leaders' minds, the Arab heartland is reorienting its 
modus-operandi to minimize avoidable disturbances and forge the most 
amicable deals.  That is why increased UAE-Iran interaction is 
welcome.  It will provide for increased economic and trade 
interaction, which will smoothen negotiations over territorial 
 
ABU DHABI 00000779  002 OF 002 
 
 
disputes.  This reflects the political maturity of regional leaders, 
and is appreciated as the way forward." 
 
QUINN