Political affairs: Union of Arab Emirates

This file concerns implemention of the nine-state Union of Arab Emirates (consisting of Bahrain, Qatar and the Trucial States) which had been agreed on in February 1968. It contains correspondence relating to:

• Meetings between Political Agents and the Gulf Rulers and their advisors to discuss the Union
• Positions of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia; and King Faisal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud’s staunch support for a union of no fewer than nine
• Questions around the future defence of the Union; including the possibility of bringing in foreign advisors
• Meeting between Gulf Rulers in Doha in October 1968, with copies of the resolutions passed
• Extravagant preparations in Doha ahead of the meeting
• Preparation of a constitution for the Union under the Sudanese legal scholar Hasan Abdulla Al Turabi
• Al Turabi privately urging the Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum to push for the Union’s early independence
• Coverage of the issue of the Union in the Arab press; and rumours that HMG is delaying withdrawal
• Possibility that Bahrain may pursue sovereign statehood outside of the Union
• Iran’s historical claim on Bahrain