Read the fourth part in the series of excerpts from the new book by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum
MOHAMMAD TALKS ABOUT EMIRATES AIRLINE, COUP IN SHARJAH AND MEMORIES OF BEIRUT
Less than 2 months after the Union was announced, the first attempt to shake UAE stability took place in Sharjah...”
Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid
States must make tough choices. A choice between the battle of development or battles of politics. I remember 1979, the year I saw some countries next to my home choose war… After 40 years, between war and peace, you see the result of the choices you make.”
CHAPTER 31 A coup at the start of Union
Less than two months after the Union was announced, the first attempt to shake UAE stability took place in Sharjah. Shaikh Zayed spoke to me about the coup, and told me: “Mohammad, finish the matter quickly.”
Shaikh Khalid Bin Mohammad Bin Saqr Al Qasimi ruled Sharjah since 1965. The leader of the coup was Shaikh Saqr Bin Sultan Bin Saqr Al Qasimi. I took two of my men and went to Shaikh Khalid’s palace. I arrived and spoke to Shaikh Saqr on the phone. “If Shaikh Khalid is well,” I told Shaikh Saqr, “a plane will fly you out of the UAE. But if he’s not well, I will surrender you to Shaikh Zayed and he will be the judge.” He replied: “Khalid was killed.” Those words moved the blood in my veins and I told him: “You have only 5 minutes to get out.”
He went out with his son Sultan and other men.
CHAPTER 32 Terrorism crossing borders
At 7am, in one of my morning meetings at the Defence Ministry, I followed a Lufthansa Boeing 737 with 91 passengers and crew, hijacked by members of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). When the aircraft landed in Dubai, one of the hijackers took the microphone and started yelling. I spoke to a man with no logic for 48 hours. After 48 hours, the aircraft was refuelled. They left. Upon reaching Aden, they killed the pilot.
October was long, as if it will never end. After a meeting with Syrian foreign minister Abed Haleem Khadam in Abu Dhabi on my way to Dubai, an emergency call made me park on the side. It was an assassination attempt on Khadam. A bullet missed him but killed Saif Bin Ghobash, the UAE Foreign Minister.
CHAPTER 33 Unifying the troops ...
May 6, 1976, was a historic event. I felt I delivered on my promise to Shaikh Zayed and to my father. I felt the mission was accomplished: a real force of the country was formed. I felt that on that day, I had delivered and was on par with the trust placed upon me; built a force that will protect our country, laid down the foundations for a strong country — respected and with sovereignty. No one could hinder it, or stop it.
CHAPTER 34 Between War and Peace
States must make tough choices. A choice between the battle of development or battles of politics. I remember 1979, the year I saw some countries next to my home chose war. We chose development. Forty years later, I saw the result of these deliberate choices. In 1979, Dubai saw a pivotal year. Three big projects were launched: Jebel Ali Port, Dubai Aluminium (Dubal) and the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the tallest building in the Middle East, and the largest in the world.
Yes, after 40 years, between war and peace, you see the result.
CHAPTER 35 Dubai the Destination
I was only 10 years old when I realised Dubai’s potential to be a big city for investors and tourists.
Years passed. Dubai built its own airport. My life was devoted to the political and military aspects of building the Union. But inside me, I remained convinced Dubai had to become a destination. In 2014, British newspapers bannered on their front pages: “Dubai Airport surpasses Heathrow as the biggest airport in the world, in international passengers.” I read the news. And remembered the day I stood amazed, back when I was only 10 years old, 50 years ago, the first time I landed at Heathrow. And I said to myself: “Glory to God, Glory to God.”
CHAPTER 36 COOPERATION
On the sidelines of one of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) meetings at the beginning of the 1980s, while all ministers were discussing challenges, prices and many other political matters, I was still in my mid-30s.
I told them: “Why don’t we develop different industries, and make Dubai the centre of the tourism industry in the region?”
Then one of the old foreign ministers laughed. “What will tourists find in Dubai?” he asked. Everybody else laughed. Today, the Dubai tourism industry revenues account for one-third of the tourism industry in the Middle East, reaching $77 billion in 2017.
CHAPTER 37 A Dubai airline
In 1983, a dispute occurred between Gulf Air and Pakistan International Airlines over landing rights. Gulf Air asked me to stop Dubai’s “Open Skies” policy — or they would withdraw from our airport. It meant losing 70 per cent of our airport’s traffic. I called the CEO of Dnata (Dubai National Air Travel Association), Maurice Flanagan, in 1984 to my office for his advice on a dream I’ve always had: the establishment of an airline based in Dubai. I asked the team: How much would it cost to launch an airline? They said: $10 million. My answer: OK, but I won’t pay a dime after that.
I asked Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, who is younger than me by a few years, to be the CEO of the new airline. Today, Emirates airline has earned numerous awards as the world’s best airline.
CHAPTER 38 The launch of two dreams
1985 was a breakthrough. I launched Emirates airline and the Jebel Ali Free Zone, a commercial and industrial area within which foreigners could own 100% of their business, and allowed them to acquire Customs exemptions for imports. On the first day, there were 300 companies registered with the free zone. The dream got bigger.
CHAPTER 39 Beirut
My first memories of Beirut were when I was young. We had to travel to Beirut to reach London. It amazed me as a child. I loved it when I was a boy, and saddens me now that I’m old. The streets were clean, the neighbourhoods were beautiful, there were modern shopping districts in the 1960s. It was an inspiration for me and a dream for Dubai to become like Beirut one day. Unfortunately, Lebanon was divided and fragmented into sectarian dimensions. So Beirut was no longer Beirut.
CHAPTER 40 Invasion of a brother
News about Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990 came as a shock to me. I remember having asked a general to repeat it to me three times.
How could Saddam have done it? What was his next step? It was a turning point that changed the region. People started leaving. I ordered that no one should be stopped. Cash can leave the country. Weeks later, the same people returned with cash back to Dubai. If we had stopped them, we would have doubled their fear and caused them to believe our banks were unstable. We proved that nothing changes in Dubai.