GCC security inseparable, says UAE Dy Chief of Staff

General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, with Major-General Eisa Saif Al Mazrouei — Wam

He told Dira’ al Watan (Nation Shield Magazine) on the 36^th anniversary of Unification of the UAE Armed Forces, “Our Armed Forces today is among the advanced armies worldwide in terms of the armament, training and technology, thanks to the support of the wise leadership.”

Staff Maj-Gen Al Mazrouei said as the advancement of the UAE Armed Forces continues under the leadership of the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, it is not aimed against anyone or intended for aggression, but a natural process for defending the gains, just Arab rights and support of people affected by wars and catastrophes worldwide irrespective of race or colour. He added that the UAE under Shaikh Khalifa is a peace-loving country and supports the international peace and security, and keen on building modern, strong army based on recruitment of efficient national cadres equipped with knowledge, allegiance to the country and its national, international and humanitarian message outlined by the late founder Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Staff Maj-Gen Al Mazrouei said the current rapid regional and the Middle East developments brought home the vision of the leadership for developing the Armed Forces. “We are not immune from what is happening around us as we keep pace with all new developments. What was done by Iran recently was a demonstration of muscles and provocation when the Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, visited the UAE’s occupied Island of Abu Mousa, under Iranian occupation since 1971. It is a clear violation of the understandings that have been reached between the two countries to find a peaceful solution to the issue of Iran’s occupation of the three UAE islands — the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu Mousa. The move is also incompatible with the principles of good neighbourliness.”

The Deputy Chief of Staff of the UAE Armed Forces did not hide the increasing concerns of the UAE, the GCC and othewr countries towards Iran’s provocative positions to the UAE’s peaceful stance to resolve this issue, and towards growing Iranian nuclear programme, and fears of leading the region into a nuclear arms race.

He added that these concerns are based mainly on keeping the region away from any form of nuclear arms, stressing that the continuation of Iran’s nuclear programme will lead to an imbalance in the security system in the region. “Iran’s possession of this weapon would be tense as it insists on the occupation of the three UAE islands and considers the issue an internal affair, despite the fact that the occupation of the three Islands has been one of the issues on the agenda of the GCC, Arab and Muslim Summits. The international support to the right of the UAE to the islands, its efforts and position to resolve this issue peacefully has been exhibited by the international community.”

Staff Maj-Gen Al Mazrouei underscored that the joint GCC Security is a strategic option to the GCC and sole option to safeguard the security and stability of the GCC states at collective and individual levels. “Any aggression on any GCC state is aggression on all GCC states. The GCC security is inseparable,” he said, citing the deployment of the Peninsula Shield Forces in the Kingdom of Bahrain to ensure security and stability. —