The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an enigmatic country for those unfamiliar with it. Comprising seven emirates, the UAE, particularly Dubai, has gained prominence and global recognition in recent times. Expatriates in the Emirates are in the vast majority. Only 15% of the country's around 10 million population are citizens. The UAE is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, with a per capita domestic product value of nearly 80% higher than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average.
The Gulf first became famous globally with Kuwait's wealth. It was known as an oil paradise and an expensive country. Going back in time, Lebanon's Beirut had a similar reputation as a financial and commercial center in the Middle East. Uninterrupted internal conflicts and war made Beirut out of being Beirut. Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and the Gulf War has turned into a tornado that exploits and sucks the wealth of the Middle East.
When Dubai emerged as a financial center and a city of seven-star hotels, it attracted world-renowned trade giants and service providers. Dubai has been so well known that most thought the UAE consisted of only Dubai for a long time.
Then, Abu Dhabi, as the capital of the UAE, the second largest Emirate, and the administrative center of all the Emirates, started to gain fame slowly. Despite having rich oil fields, Abu Dhabi has come to the forefront as a financial center. Having rich natural resources like other countries in the region, what distinguishes UAE from many Arab countries is its extraordinary administrative capacity and ability to optimize and manage available assets and wealth.
Its perspective allows this country to develop beyond being only oil-and-gas-rich by implementing sophisticated administration techniques and becoming the center of trade and investment.
When an investment size of $50 billion (TL 1.35 trillion) was mentioned during President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, all knew that this size was not an exaggerated figure in cooperation with Türkiye. The UAE has an investment fund worth up to a trillion dollars and is using it smartly and efficiently to expand its economic capacity.
Türkiye is now an industrial country and a country that produces primarily for its own needs for a population of 100 million, with $300 billion in exports.
Türkiye has developed many sophisticated products, and the defense industry has triggered many subindustry branches. Türkiye, with a population of 100 million and a robust army, is on its way to becoming a land of security and stability in the region. Besides Türkiye's own population of 85 million, some 5 million refugees and around 50 million tourists annually add up to approximately 100 million when the average length of stay of the tourists is taken into account. Türkiye is a country that produces industrial and agricultural products and services and also consumes in sizeable quantities.
The Republic of Türkiye has a well-connected network that no other state would easily have. It can trade with all its neighbors, develop joint projects and establish new creative business models.
A high-volume commercial relationship to be established between the UAE and Türkiye will facilitate cooperation in different fields such as transportation, maritime, and port management and generate lucrative returns, especially when combined with industrial organizations exporting to the wealthy West.
Cash, also called hot money by Western financial circles, is available in Arab countries. Among them, Abu Dhabi funds are the most notable ones in the world.
To have built its infrastructure in many areas and established institutions are indications of the development of a country. Today, Türkiye's transportation infrastructure, energy ecosystem, health system, educational infrastructure, schools, and universities, including modern urbanism as a whole, are now on the scale of developed countries of Europe.
The development of commercial relations and cooperation on this infrastructure, the financial and marketing ties to be established with other countries, and all industrial investments, especially in the defense industry, will manifest the advancement following the infrastructure revolution in Türkiye.
Before the last presidential election, the efforts of Türkiye to become a regional power and a regional trade center for independence and development were politically in jeopardy. President Erdoğan eliminated this possibility by winning the elections. Now that it has completed all its infrastructure, it will make the country's commercial modeling with all countries it enters into economic cooperation, such as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, the EU members, and will bring its export income to $500 billion in a short time, and even to higher figures shortly after. Türkiye is on the verge of being a trading country with its potential and infrastructure. Mega investors like Abu Dhabi will also nurture this vision.
