At the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, arrived in Pakistan on December 26 on his first official visit. Pakistan Air Force fighter jets escorted the President’s aircraft and presented an aerial salute, and when he arrived at Nur Khan Air Base, the Prime Minister gave him a warm welcome. A 21-gun salute and a guard of honour were also presented, which reflects Pakistan’s reaching new heights in bilateral relations.
The United Arab Emirates is an extremely stable and economically attractive country that is rich in oil and natural gas resources, which were discovered many years ago as a result of foreign investment, due to which it soon came to be counted among the richest states in the world. Despite being affected by the global economic crisis from 2007 to 2009, the United Arab Emirates recovered quickly, its development projects resumed, and the property market began to improve after 2012, which demonstrates its economic resilience. Now this country is rapidly developing in tourism, trade, and technology due to soft tax policies, duty-free zones, and a business-friendly environment.
Diplomatic relations between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates have existed since 1971 and are long-standing and brotherly, continuously progressing in various fields. In recent years, both countries have reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen bilateral trade and economic cooperation, which includes the approval of important economic and trade agreements during high-level visits. The United Arab Emirates is investing in Pakistan’s economy, while both countries are further strengthening relations by discussing historical and cultural links and matters of mutual interest. These relations not only promote economic development but also affirm and advance a shared vision of peace and prosperity in the region.
I had the opportunity in the past to serve as Ambassador in the United Arab Emirates, and Pakistan was the first country that not only recognized the UAE first but also established its diplomatic mission there. It is another matter that Pakistan could not develop at the pace that has been a hallmark of the United Arab Emirates, and today the UAE has assets of 2.5 trillion dollars combining its sovereign wealth fund and pension fund. The country’s GDP is around 500 billion dollars. In the past, a country that survived only with the help of oil and petroleum products, today its non-oil trade volume has reached 817 billion dollars. Its foreign exchange reserves exceed 250 billion dollars. Bilateral trade with Pakistan in 2024–25 reached approximately 10.1 billion dollars, with Pakistan’s exports at around 2.1 billion dollars and imports close to 8 billion dollars. These links are expected to further strengthen in the fields of energy, investment, and services, while remittances from Pakistani expatriates may exceed 7 billion dollars in 2025.
In the past, many memorandums of understanding and agreements were signed between Pakistan and the UAE, and the President’s visit is also significant in the sense that during such visits matters can reach the stage of implementing these kinds of agreements. Today the UAE has become a very attractive destination for international investment, and more than 1.8 million Pakistani citizens residing in the UAE are a strong link in bilateral relations. In 2024, Pakistanis residing in the UAE sent 6.7 billion dollars in remittances to Pakistan.
After the limited-scale military conflict against India this year, which is called Ma‘rakah-e-Haq, the heights reached by the country’s foreign policy have no precedent in the past. Today, the importance that the United States is giving to its relations with Pakistan, and the articles being written in international journals in favour of Pakistani leadership, foreign policy, and diplomacy, indicate that the UAE visit can also prove to be an opportunity for Pakistan that is of key importance compared to the past. Just as in May 2024, when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited the UAE, the Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan announced an investment of 10 billion dollars in Pakistan. Today, 19 companies belonging to the United Arab Emirates are working in various sectors in Pakistan. This year, the UAE is the third largest country making direct investment in Pakistan. There is a need for Pakistan to promote bilateral cooperation at the people-to-people level, increase mutual trade in science and technology, defence, and other sectors, while the sectors in which the UAE has already invested include banking, IT, real estate, energy, and communications. As a result of promoting mutual relations and trade, investment in Pakistan could double to 20 billion dollars.
There is a need for the Pakistani rulers to look within themselves and review what factors are responsible for the fact that even brotherly countries like the UAE do not see commercial interest in importing products from Pakistan and also do not show much interest in acquiring manpower from Pakistan.
If the depth of bilateral relations between the two countries is examined, then economically and commercially Pakistan has not been able to obtain from the United Arab Emirates the economic benefits that were needed. The reason for this is very simple: over different decades, Pakistan’s elders and rulers paid more attention to their personal interests while national interests were neglected.
If these same rulers had enabled institutions in Pakistan to promote skills to the extent that they could provide internationally recognized certification, then in such a situation Pakistan’s manpower would not only be absorbed in the UAE and various Gulf countries, but all these countries would have given Pakistan preference over other countries. But unfortunately this could not happen, and the world moved far ahead while Pakistan remained standing where it was.
The reality is that we can neither meet the challenges of 21st century with the economic tools of the 19th century, while Pakistan is running its institutions by adopting obsolete methods in a stereotypical manner, seeing which not only local but also international traders become frustrated and prefer to leave this country.
As Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, in personal meetings and conversations as well, the UAE rulers often used to mention that when their Emirati citizens go to Pakistan for investment, they get trapped in many complications created by bureaucracy and return.
Taking advantage of this invaluable gift of nature that Pakistan is not only well positioned geographically but Pakistan’s image is also at its peak in the world, to create alignment with this the government must necessarily bring revolutionary reforms in its institutions so that we can deliver our products to the United Arab Emirates and use our relations for economic improvement.
The rapidly changing geopolitical landscape presents a significant opportunity for Pakistan, particularly in the context of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, both of which have divergent interests in Yemen and Sudan and are seeking Pakistan’s attention and support. Pakistan needs to leverage this situation and must not miss this opportunity, as happened during General Musharraf’s time.
