Visit by Douglas Hurd, Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), January 1981

This file concerns the visit of the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Douglas Hurd to the UAE. It contains correspondence concerning:

• Briefing notes on trade, regional security issues, UK-UAE cooperation, and competition between Britain and France for the sale of aircraft to the UAE
• Hurd’s planned visit to Oman, Qatar and Bahrain
• The programme for Hurd’s visit; and the modifications to the programme due to the simultaneous visit of the Secretary of State for Energy David Howell
• Thank you letters from Hurd following his visit to the UAE for the Minister of Petroleum Mana Saeed Al Otaiba, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, The Minister of Defence Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and the Ruler of Sharjah Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi
• Briefing notes on the leading personalities in the government of the UAE
• Briefing notes for a dispute concerning a proposed London-Sharjah-Hong Kong air service operated by Laker Airways
• Hurd's meetings with various UAE ministers including, the UAE Foreign Minister Ahmad Bin Khalifa Al Suwaidi, Sheikh Khalifa, Sheikh Sultan, and Sheikh Rashid Bin Abdulla Al Nuaimi, during his visit, and their discussions on numerous issues, including: regional cooperation; Arab divisions; the Arab-Israeli conflict; US President Ronald Reagan; the Iran-Iraq war; UK-UAE military cooperation; North Sea Oil; Sharjah's oil strikes; the proposed Laker Airways service; and the debts of some of the Emirates
• The head of the Ministry of Defence Sales Department Sir R Ellis’s report on the visit in relation to aircraft sales