THE UAE’S PORT IMPERIALISM
In this compelling excerpt, former Ethiopian diplomat Mohammad Hasan exposes the Port Imperialism project spearheaded by the UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) - a calculated geopolitical strategy to dominate the maritime lifelines of Africa and the Middle East.
Hasan outlines a sweeping plan to seize control of critical gateways, with the UAE aiming to control every major African port stretching from the eastern Sudanese city of Port Sudan all the way down to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. The project extends across the Gulf to dominate all Yemeni ports up to Mukalla.
The goal, Hasan suggests, is to ensure that Dubai surpasses Singapore as the world's premier maritime hub.
But how did a desert state acquire the intelligence to execute such a vast maritime takeover?
Hasan points to a colonial legacy. The UK, the former colonial power in South Yemen, reportedly provided the foundational data for this project. Indeed, by 1951, Aden was the second-biggest port in the world. The UAE is now said to be using that colonial blueprint to resurrect a new era of coastal control.
The former diplomat further alleges that this project is not being executed in isolation.
He links the UAE's Port Imperialism directly to the Abraham Accords to normalise with Isr*el, claiming that Mossad's second office is in Dubai and operates in tandem with Isr*eli and US interests to secure regional dominance.
Thus, if the UAE succeeds in controlling the coasts, it can position itself as the gatekeeper of three continents, backed by old colonial secrets and new intelligence alliances.