Among the other essential intelligence and services the UAE and Dubai provide, Dubai has the only port in that area that can handle aircraft carriers .. dockside ... like the new USS Ronald Reagan, the newest Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, currently on her maiden deployment .. God bless her.
Persian Gulf (March 7, 2006) - Gunner's mates line up to take their turn at shooting targets on aircraft elevator three during a small arms firing exercise aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). Reagan with her embarked Carrier Air Wing One Four (CVW-14) is currently on her maiden deployment conducting Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in the region and participating in the global war on terrorism.
Persian Gulf (Feb. 27, 2006) – A Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) team assigned to the guided-missile cruiser USS Cape St. George (CG 71) transits the Persian Gulf to conduct a boarding in support of Maritime Security Operations (MSO). The Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) teams are certified to conduct compliant and non-compliant ship boarding.
Persian Gulf (March 1, 2006) – Maintenance crews take to the flight deck for routine maintenance after flight operations aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). Reagan and embarked Carrier Air Wing One Four (CVW-14) are currently on her maiden deployment conducting Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in the region and participating in the global war on terrorism.
U.S. Navy personnel guard as people leave U.S military ship Vicksburg at the end of opening of a new state-of-the-art DP World-managed oil terminal facility in Djibouti February 26, 2006.
U.S. Navy personnel guard near U.S. military ship Vicksburg during the opening ceremony of a new state-of-the-art DP World-managed oil terminal facility in Djibouti February 26, 2006."
This is a surprise among the Navy photos. She recently married a very wealthy pharma executive .. maybe he's not a lib.
Atlantic Ocean (Feb. 25, 2006) - Retired Adm. Greg Johnson explains flight operations to actress Glenn Close and actor David Shaw on the flight deck aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65). Enterprise is currently underway conducting carrier qualifications prior to Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX).
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Dubai has become a central Middle East hub for trade and finance, accounting for about 85 percent of the Emirates’ re-export trade. The UAE has been a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) since 1995, and has one of the most open economies in the region. It began negotiations in March 2005 with the United States on a possible free trade agreement.
According to the UAE government, 15 commercial ports (including oil terminals), as of December 2005, serve the country, with a total capacity of more than 70 million tons. Located in the city of Dubai, Mina Rashid, completed in 1972, is the leading port of the Gulf region.
It has modern facilities to handle almost all types of commercial and passenger shipping, including roll-on-roll-off containers. Also located in Dubai, Mina Jabal Ali, completed in 1979, is the largest port in the country and the largest man-made harbor in the world.
It deals primarily in bulk cargo and industrial material for the Mina Jabal Ali Free Zone, an international investment haven. In 2004 the two ports had a combined annual traffic of more than 77 million tons of cargo, nearly 65 million twenty-foot-equivalent-units of containers, and 14,000 vessels. The two ports, collectively, ranked tenth in the world in terms of total container throughput in 2004.
In August 2005, the Dubai Ports Authority began the first stage of a multi-year, US$1.4 billion expansion project at Mina Jabal Ali that will increase storage-handling capacity to 2.5 million twenty-foot-equivalent units by 2007, and 5 million twenty-foot-equivalent units by 2008.
In September 2005, the Dubai Ports Authority merged with Dubai Ports International Terminals to create a single global port operator—Dubai Ports World, owned by the Dubai government. A new regulatory body, the Dubai Ports and Jabal Ali Free Zone Authority, was created to oversee the regulation and administration of Dubai’s port operations.
As of December 2005, the UAE has 35 airports, 22 of which have paved runways, as well as two heliports. Of the 35 airports, six are international.
Dubai International Airport, which now supports 105 airlines, is undergoing a US$4.1 billion expansion. The Abu Dhabi International Airport, which supports 50 airlines, is undergoing a multi-year, US$500 million expansion project; completion is expected by 2006.
Al Ayn International Airport, built in 1994, supports 10 airlines, and plans have been made to spend US$20.5 million to expand its facilities. Sharjah International Airport, the first airport to be built in the UAE, launched the low-cost Air Arabia Airlines in 2003 to serve destinations in the Middle East and Asia. The airport handles 1.3 million passengers per year. There are currently plans to spend US$61 million over the next two years to expand this airport’s facilities.
The United States has enjoyed friendly relations with the U.A.E. since 1971. Private commercial ties, especially in petroleum, have developed into friendly government-to-government ties which include security assistance.
The breadth, depth, and quality of U.S.-U.A.E. relations increased dramatically as a result of the U.S.-led coalition's campaign to end the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait.
In 2002, the U.S. and the U.A.E. launched a strategic partnership dialogue covering virtually every aspect of the relationship. The U.A.E. has been a key partner in the war on terror after September 11, 2001. The United States was the third country to establish formal diplomatic relations with the U.A.E. and has had an ambassador resident in the U.A.E. since 1974.
In July 2004, the UAE enacted legislation that criminalized the funding of terrorist organizations. The law also increased the amount of time that public prosecutors can hold suspects in terrorism-related cases without charge from 21 days to six months. Terrorism cases are referred to the Federal Supreme Court, which may extend the detention period indefinitely.
In December 2004, the Dubai Ports Authority (DPA), which operates the main container ports of Mina Jabal Ali and Mina Rashid, became the first Middle Eastern port to participate in the U.S. Homeland Security Container Security Initiative (CSI) program, which is aimed at preventing materials that could be used by terrorist groups from entering the United States in shipping containers. Under the CSI, DPA employees will screen suspicious United States-bound containerized cargo transiting Dubai’s ports.
