Virtually unlimited military budgets in retaliation.
A private army, funded by oil wealth, armed with up-to-date weapons systems, could take down the governments of any small nation in Central or South America. How could Chavez stop them?
What the UAE is *really* afraid of is a democratic revolt by all of its workers, who are mainly Pakistanis and Filipinos and kept in labor camps.
Apparently the Emiratis don’t do anything for themselves, aside from count their money.