Sheikh Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ( ar, عبد الله بن زايد بن سلطان آل نهيان; born 30 April 1972) is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates. He is a son of the founder of the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ( ar, زَايِد بِن سُلْطَان آل نَهْيَان, Zāyed bin Sulṭān Āl Nahyān; 6 May 1918 – 2 November 2004) was an Emirati politician, statesman, and philanthropist who served as ...

. In 2020, he was a signatory of the

Abraham Accords The Abraham Accords are a series of joint normalization statements initially between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, effective since September 15, 2020. Mediated by the United States, the initial announcement of August 13, 2020, ...

on behalf of the UAE.

Personal life

Abdullah bin Zayed was born in Abu Dhabi on 30 April 1972. He holds a degree in political science from

UAE University United Arab Emirates University (UAEU; ar, جامعة الإمارات العربية المتحدة) is a public research university located in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. It is the oldest university in the United Arab Emirates. It was esta ...

. He is married to Sheikha Alyazia bint Saif Al Nahyan, who became an

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

Goodwill Ambassador extraordinary in 2010, and has five children: Fatima, Mohammad, Zayed, Saif and Theyab.

Career

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates on 9 February 2006. In 2017, leaked emails highlighted that Abdullah bin Zayed maintained close contacts with

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

, who was being funded by the UAE as the Middle East peace envoy. Blair held a number of official meetings with the UAE Foreign Minister. The emails also revealed that Abdullah bin Zayed was one of the UAE royals who bankrolled the envoy. In 2011, Sheikh Abdullah's office separately sent $2 million to Blair through Windrush Ventures, which channeled money for Tony Blair's commercial advisory work. The UAE Foreign Ministry also transferred $12 million to Windrush for Blair consultancy work in Colombia, Vietnam and Mongolia. In August 2017, Sheikh Abdullah urged Iran and Turkey to end what the UAE called their "colonial" actions in Syria, signaling unease about diminishing Gulf Arab influence in the war, and calling "the exit of those parties trying to reduce the sovereignty of the Syrian state." He added that "if Iran and Turkey continue the same historical, colonial and competitive behavior and perspectives between them in Arab affairs, we will continue in this situation not just in Syria today but tomorrow in some other country." On 14 February 2019, Sheikh Abdullah said that Israel was justified in attacking Iranian targets in Syria. On 15 September 2020, Sheikh Abdullah signed the official Israel–United Arab Emirates peace agreement in a ceremony at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, US. In February 2022, the UAE abstained in a UN Security Council vote to condemn Russia for invading Ukraine. Sheikh Abdullah had a call with US Secretary of State

Antony Blinken Antony John Blinken (born April 16, 1962) is an American government official and diplomat serving as the 71st United States secretary of state since January 26, 2021. He previously served as deputy national security advisor from 2013 to 2015 a ...

prior to the UN Security Council vote. In the phone call, Blinken spoke of the "importance of building a strong international response to support Ukrainian sovereignty through the UN Security Council." The Emirati readout of the phone call did not include Blinken's statement.

Other roles

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed is a member of the UAE's National Security Council, Deputy Chairman of the UAE's Permanent Committee on Borders, Chairman of th
National Media Council
chairman of the Board of Directors of th
Emirates Foundation for Youth Development
Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of th
Abu Dhabi Fund for Development
(ADFD) and Board Member of the National Defense College. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed served as Minister of Information and Culture from 1997 to 2006. Previously, he served as Chairman of Emirates Media Incorporated, Chairman of the

UAE Football Association The United Arab Emirates Football Association (UAEFA; ar, الاتحاد الاماراتي لكرة القدم) is the governing body of association football, beach soccer and futsal in the United Arab Emirates. Association staff Presiden ...

(1993–2001), and as the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Culture from 1995 to 1997.

Honours

* :

Order of Skanderbeg Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

(decorated by President of Albania

Bujar Nishani Bujar Nishani (; 29 September 1966 – 28 May 2022) was an Albanian politician. He served as President of Albania from 24 July 2012 to 24 July 2017. Nishani was the youngest person to have been chosen as president of Albania, taking office at ...

on 13 March 2016). * : Honorary Knight Commander of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

Ancestry

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nahyan, Abdullah bin Zayed Abdullah bin Zayed Children of presidents of the United Arab Emirates Emirati politicians Foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates Culture ministers of the United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates University alumni 1972 births Living people Recipients of the Order of Skanderbeg (1990–) Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George