UAE president names son crown prince
UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (MbZ) appointed his oldest son Khaled bin Mohammed as crown prince of Abu Dhabi on 29 March, and appointed his brothers as deputy rulers of the country, state-run Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
“His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, President of the UAE, in his capacity as Ruler of Abu Dhabi, has issued an Emiri decree appointing His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi,” WAM reported.
MbZ’s brothers Tahnoun bin Zayed and Hazza bin Zayed Al-Nahyan were also named deputy rulers of Abu Dhabi by the Emirati president.
He also appointed his other brother, Mansour bin Zayed, as vice president of the UAE alongside Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the current prime minister.
The president’s move has been described as an attempt at further centralizing power, yet concentrating it within his immediate family. By appointing his brothers to top positions, MbZ has maintained “some power-sharing balance, but only within (Abu Dhabi’s) Al-Nahyan clan,” Cinzia Bianco, a research fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said.
Following MbZ’s ascension to the UAE presidency last year following the death of his brother in May 2022, some had wondered whether or not he would appoint one of his other brothers as heir to the throne. The decision to make his son crown prince is reminiscent of the Saudi monarch’s decision to grant his son, Mohamed bin Salman (MbS), wide-ranging powers in 2017.
Khaled bin Mohammed had been serving as the Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council and was being groomed by his father in wide-ranging roles of authority, according to analysts.
For years before assuming the presidency of the UAE, MbZ had served as the country’s de-facto ruler.
Under his leadership, the UAE entered into a strategic anti-Iran alliance with Tel Aviv and Washington as a result of the 2020 Abraham Accords, which saw a number of Arab states normalize ties with Israel.
Despite this, it has also attempted to ease tensions with Tehran and maintain positive economic and diplomatic relations with it.
Abu Dhabi has also significantly expanded its role in the Saudi-led war against Yemen, particularly through the colonization of the country’s islands.
