Dubai threat to hit back (UAE Threatens Against Boeing and US Bases Support)

Dubai is threatening retaliation against American strategic and commercial interests if Washington blocks its $6.8 billion takeover of operations at several U.S. ports.

As the House Appropriations Committee yesterday marked up legislation to kill Dubai Ports World’s acquisition of Britain’s Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation (P&O), the emirate let it be known that it is preparing to hit back hard if necessary.

A source close to the deal said members of Dubai’s royal family are furious at the hostility both Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill have shown toward the deal.

“They’re saying, ‘All we’ve done for you guys, all our purchases, we’ll stop it, we’ll just yank it,’” the source said.

Retaliation from the emirate could come against lucrative deals with aircraft maker Boeing and by curtailing the docking of hundreds of American ships, including U.S. Navy ships, each year at its port in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the source added.

It is not clear how much of Dubai’s behind-the-scenes anger would be followed up by action, but Boeing has been made aware of the threat and is already reportedly lobbying to save the ports deal.

The Emirates Group airline will decide later this year whether it will buy Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner or its competitor, Airbus A350. The airline last fall placed an order worth $9.7 billion for 42 Boeing 777 aircraft, making Dubai Boeing’s largest 777 customer.

Dubai in mid-February also established the Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, a $15 billion investment to create a company that will lease planes, develop airports and make aircraft parts to tap into growing demand for air travel in the Middle East and Asia.

The family-ruled sheikhdom may buy as many as 50 wide-body aircraft from Boeing and Airbus during the next four years, according to Aerospace Enterprise officials.

The UAE military also bought Boeing’s Apache helicopters. Meanwhile, Boeing has been in talks with the emirates to try to sell its AWACS planes.

An industry official with knowledge of Boeing’s contracts with Dubai said that the company has been involved in the emirate and that it would take a lot “to knock” those relationships.

“Nothing about the [ports] controversy diminishes our commitment to the region,” said John Dern, Boeing’s corporate spokesman. He added that at this point the company has no indication that there is or will be an impact on the company.

Any repercussion to Boeing could put House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) in a delicate position. Boeing’s decision to move its headquarters to Chicago has been seen as calculated to facilitate a close relationship with Hastert. He is against the ports deal, and his office did not return calls by press time.

Several businesses have expressed concern that the controversy over the $6.8 billion ports deal could damage trade with the UAE. Dubai is one of the seven emirates. The United States and the UAE are meeting next week for a fourth round of talks to sign a free-trade agreement. The American Business Group of Abu Dhabi, which has no affiliation with the U.S. government, said that Arabs may hesitate to invest into the United States, according to a report by Reuters.

A Republican trade lobbyist said that because the ports deal is a national-security issue blocking it would not be in violation of World Trade Agreement rules.

“In terms of them retaliating legally against the U.S. … I don’t think there are many options there,” the lobbyist said.

But when it comes to the emirates’ cooperation in the war on terrorism and in intelligence gathering, there is concern that some help may be pulled.

“If we reject the company in terms of doing the [ports] work, they are going to lose a lot of face. In the Arab culture, losing face is a big deal,” a former government official said. “We risk losing that help. It is not an empty threat.”

Dubai is a critical logistics hub for the U.S. Navy and a popular relaxation destination for troops fighting in the Middle East. On many occasions since the ports story erupted, the Pentagon has stressed the importance of the U.S-UAE relationship.

Last year, the U.S. Navy docked 590 supply vessels in Dubai, plus 56 warships, Gordon England, deputy secretary of defense, said in a Senate hearing last month. About 77,000 military personnel went on leave in the UAE last year, he added.

During the hearing, he warned about the implications of a negative decision on the ports deal: “So obviously it would have some effect on us, and I’d not care to quantify that, because I don’t have the facts to quantify it. It would certainly have an effect on us.”

Although owned by the Dubai government, the company at the heart of this controversy, Dubai Ports World, is trying to distance itself from any kinds of threats, said a lobbyist closely tracking the deal.

Another lobbyist monitoring the controversy said K Street still believes there will be a compromise that allows the Dubai deal to go through while meeting congressional security concerns, even though a bill aimed at that result, put forward by House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Peter King (R-N.Y.), was widely repudiated amongst lawmakers Tuesday.

Senate leaders have indicated that they would wait to take action until the new 45-day Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) review is completed.

Meanwhile, in London, DP World cleared the last hurdle for its take over of P&O. The Court of Appeal in London refused Miami-based Eller & Co., which opposed the deal, permission to appeal against clearances for the legal and financial measures necessary to implement the takeover.

P&O said it expects to file the requisite court orders, making the takeover terms binding on DP World, according to the Financial Times.

WOW .. xenophobia in full .. extraordinarily tunnel-visioned and a complete rejection of reality .. it's staggering that the facts remain so unexplored.

Separate and apart from being a documented rare and extremely critical ally of ours in the WOT, i.e., the bases, the safe ports, combat flight origination, provisions and military R&R they provide for our Navy and other armed forces, especially since it puts them at such deadly risk from Islamofascists, Dubai is a booming megalopolis .. with more new resorts, hotels, commercial projects and residential communities planned and under construction than probably anywhere else in the world.

They're modernized, westernized .. they have four Christian churches in Dubai, and according to an American ex-pat FReeper who loves living and working there, as do thousands of Americans, Christmas is bigger than Ramadan.

Putting even that reality aside for a moment, they're planning ahead for the gradual depletion of their oil revenues and petrol market volatility with other resources and income streams by creating a phenomenal global business hub and tourist destination to the tune of uncountable billions, in addition to other worldwide businesses and projects.

The only purported 7-Star Hotel in the world.

Dubai International Airport (there's more than one)

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"The Palm Islands, also referred to as The Palm Dubai and The Palms, are the three largest man-made islands in the world, which are being built on the coast of the emirate of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Its concept was announced in May 2002 and the three resort islands are expected to maintain Dubai's position as a premium tourist destination. The Palm Islands is also the self-declared 'Eighth Wonder of the World'.

Each of the islands (Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, and Palm Deira) are being built in the shape of a date palm tree and consist of a trunk, a crown with fronds, and are surrounded by a crescent island that acts as a breakwater. The islands will support luxury hotels, freehold residential villas, unique water homes, shoreline apartments, marinas, water theme parks, restaurants, shopping malls, sports facilities, health spas, cinemas and various diving sites."

The Palm

"The unique man-made island is built in the shape of a date palm tree and consists of a trunk, a crown with 17 fronds, and a surrounding crescent island that will form a water-breaker.

The Jumeirah Palm island is primarily a retreat and residential area for living, relaxation, and leisure. It will contain themed boutique hotels, three types of villas (Signature Villas, Garden Homes, and Canal Cove Town Homes), shoreline apartment buildings, beaches, marinas, restaurants, cafes and a variety of retail outlets.

The Palm Jumeirah will contain over 25 of the top international hotel brands including Movenpick, Antara, Fairmont, Radisson SAS, Hilton, Metropolitan, Shangri La, One and Only Royal Mirage, Starwood, Marriott, Oberoi, Chedi, Taj and Dusit. Other developments will include Al Basri Building, Al Habool Building, Al Anbara Building, Emerald Palace, The Fairmont Palm Residence, Jewel of the Palm, and the Trump Plaza and Marina Residences. Construction began on the Palm Jumeirah island in June 2001.

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Dubai consortium in airport bid for India, China, Middle East

02.23.2006 - A newly-formed Dubai consortium unveiled plans to bid for the development and operation of airports in China, India and the Middle East, a market they estimate to be worth 400 bln usd.

The consortium sealed a partnership today during Asian Aerospace, the world's third-largest airshow.

A statement said the group will 'target the 400 bln usd airport development and operations market in the emerging economies, primarily in the Middle East, India and China.

The consortium comprises DAE Airports and six other top companies in the United Arab Emirates.

DAE Airports is a subsidiary of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE), a recently launched holding firm that aims to invest 15 bln usd in manufacturing and services in the aviation sector.

Its partners are real estate-based Emaar, air services supplier DNATA, aviation industry technology firm Mercator, Emirates National Oil Co, Amlak Finance and Dubai Airports Free Zone Authority (DAFZA).

'Our clients from around the globe, particularly in this region and the emerging markets of Asia, are being offered a one-stop solution for their airport needs,' said DAE managing director Mohammed Al Zarouni.

'Through DAE Airports, they will have access to a wide range of capabilities, whether this is a new airport on a greenfield site, a sophisticated operations upgrade at an existing site, or a privatisation.'

Under the agreement, consortium leader DAE Airports will identify the target projects, structure the deals and bid jointly with its partners.

The focus would be on developing new airports on a build, own, operate and transfer scheme.

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Materials Handling Exhibition - Dubai 2007

"Jebel Ali Freezone is home to many of the world's most influential multi-national companies, such as AT&T, Bose, Casio, Compaq, Daewoo, Estee Lauder, H.J.Heinz, Honda, Hyundai, JVC, Nissan, Nokia, Star TV."

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We do not know, God forbid, where the next terrorist attack will originate .. a brainwashed American, Scandinavian, Arab, British, German neardowell, wackjob psychopathic fascist, but .. just from a common sense, logic-based viewpoint ... do you *actually believe* Dubai is going to risk being complicit in terror and losing their infrastructure, fortune, their future ... their very existence?

Are all the Antis completely ignorant?

Well, Mark Levin seems to have your number: "The critics are so ill-informed, unlike we smart people who now support the UAE deal, having been educated about it after out initial knee-jerk reaction.” Well, I would like nothing more than to read the contract, but it's not public. And a federal judge ruled today that there's no need to make it available even to the New York and New Jersey Port owners. But, of course, all critics aren’t the same. There are the antiwar Democrats, who are weak on national security. And there are those of us who’ve argued steadfastly for security, and have backed the president every step of the way.[emphasis added]

Still, if some in the latter camp are being accused of overstating the UAE's role at these ports, or is it terminals, then I guess the critics should turn their finger-pointing at the president, which they are loathe to do. After all, when he threatened to veto legislation that would block the deal, he said, in part: "I think it sends a terrible signal to friends around the world that it's OK for a company from one country to manage the port, but not a country that plays by the rules and has got a good track record from another part of the world can't manage the port."

Managing the port, Mr. President?

http://levin.nationalreview.com/

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