UAE Elects Mohamed bin Zayed As President

The Federal Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates has announced that Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will be the next President of the Emirate following the death of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan who died on Saturday.

The council made the announcement on Saturday that Mohamed bin Zayed, who served as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi since November 2004 will succeed his late brother.

The announcement was made after a meeting by the Council at the Al Mushrif Palace in Abu Dhabi adding that the new president will hold the office for a five-year term before being eligible for re-election.

He will also be the 17th ruler of Abu Dhabi.

The meeting was chaired by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and attended by the UAE rulers.

In a statement, the council expressed its full confidence that the people of the UAE will remain, as Sheikh Zayed and the founders believed, “a faithful guardian of the Union and its gains at all levels”.

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Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed has also served as the Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces since January 2005. He is known for playing a key role in developing the UAE Armed Forces in terms of strategic planning, training, organisational structure and promoting defence capabilities.

Hailing Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed as “the carrier of Sheikh Zayed’s legacy, the founder of our centennial and the protector of our union,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid pledged allegiance to the successor.

“Our country shall follow him towards the path of glory and prosperity.”

The UAE began 40 days of mourning on Friday following the death of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who ruled the UAE since 2004. Government and private offices have been shut for three days starting Saturday, with work to resume on Tuesday, May 17.