Western Military Expatriates in the Armed Forces of the UAE
History and Impact, 1965–2024
By (author) Athol Yates
Hardback (Published)
(July 2026)
ISBN: 9781804131527
6.14 x 9.21 inches
Price: $126.00
In stock
The book argues that Western military expatriates, who have supported the Emirati military forces over more than 50 years, have played a crucial yet bounded role in elevating the UAE’s military capabilities to the point today where it is recognised as the pre-eminent Arab military force.
Today, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Armed Forces is recognised as the most proficient military set-up in the Arab world, recently engaged in operations in Afghanistan, Libya and Yemen, and in the fight against ISIS. This book examines a pivotal component in how the UAE built such effectiveness: Western military professionals embedded in the Emirati forces. Some of these expatriates have commanded major military formations, others served as high-ranking staff, piloted front-line aircraft, developed and delivered training, or advised senior Emirati officers. The first such individuals arrived in 1965, when they were engaged to establish the state’s initial professional military force. Expatriates have since served continuously to the present day. This volume traces their history through 14 case studies, covering the period between 1965 and 2023. It offers a comprehensive picture of the expatriates’ backgrounds, the rationale behind their recruitment, and how they have been utilized. This information provides the foundation for the book’s key research question: to what degree and how have such individuals helped to generate a sustained military advantage for the Emirati military? The implications arising from this study are important, particularly for the UAE as it contemplates the potential replacement or phasing out of Western expatriates. They are equally consequential for Western defence policy-makers seeking innovative ways to develop the capabilities of friendly advanced nations, and for the more than a thousand expatriates currently serving in the Gulf who aspire to increase their influence.
- By (author) Athol Yates
Similar Books
Ismail Hakki Bursevi’s translation of and commentary on Fusus al-Hikam By Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi
Volumes 1-4
Beiträge zur Islamischen Kunst und Archäologie
The Arts and Archaeology of Funerary Cultures in Islam
Volume 10.0
Boğazköy Tablets in the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations (Bo 95–Bo 3993)
Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesinde Bulunan Boğazköy Tabletleri (Bo 95–Bo 3993)
Volume 3
Co-production of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Artefacts, Rituals, Communities, Narratives, Doctrines, Concepts
Volume 1
Discerning Religious Truth
A Didactic Exposition of the Logic and Epistemology of the Islamic Sciences
Volume 1
Explorations in Islamic Archaeology
Material Culture, Settlements, and Landscapes from the Mediterranean to Western Asia
Volume 7
Life on the Farm in Late Medieval Jerusalem
The Village of Beit Mazmil, its Occupants and their Industry over Five Centuries
Occasionalism Revisited
New Essays from the Islamic and Western Philosophical Traditions (2nd ed.)
Volume 2
Oil Lamps in the Holy Land during the Early and Later Islamic Periods (7th–16th/17th CE)
The Collection of the Israel Antiquities Authority
Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies Volume 54 2025
Papers from the fifty-seventh meeting of the Seminar for Arabian Studies held at the Institut national d’histoire de l’art, Paris, 27–29 June 2024
The Archaeology of Irrigation Technology and Water Management in the Islamic World
Proceedings of the Bahrain Conference, January 2024
The Logic of al-Fanari
A Study and Annotated Translation of al-Fanari's Commentary on the Isaghuji
Volume 3
Die Einführung ins richtige Handeln in der Arithmetik (Madḫal ar-rašad ilā ʿilm al-ʿadad) von al-Qalaṣādī (st. 1486)
Bearbeitung und Einordnung in die maġribinische Mathematikgeschichte
Volume 19
