Azerbaijan, UAE deepen strategic alignment across energy to digital sport |
Once, imagining that relations between the South Caucasus and Arab countries would develop rapidly and become firmly established seemed like something out of One Thousand and One Nights. Today, however, this has become an observable reality. This is because the diplomatic pathways that opened up in the South Caucasus region, where Azerbaijan is located, were once limited to northern and neighbouring states. Since gaining independence, Azerbaijan has made it a guiding principle to expand the scope of its diplomatic relations further. It has aimed to develop the country’s political and economic independence not within a narrow framework alone, but across the Western, Central, Middle Eastern and Far Eastern dimensions.
Certainly, President Ilham Aliyev’s upcoming visit to the United Arab Emirates reflects the steady elevation of Azerbaijan-UAE relations from pragmatic cooperation to a broad-based strategic partnership. Over the past decade, ties between Baku and Abu Dhabi have expanded well beyond traditional diplomacy and energy cooperation. Today, the relationship encompasses green energy, tourism, investment, cyber technologies, education, humanitarian engagement and digital innovation. This multidimensional agenda provides the political and economic context for the Azerbaijani President’s visit to Abu Dhabi on 16 to 17 December, undertaken at the special invitation of UAE President Shaikh Muhammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
At the heart of this visit is President Ilham Aliyev’s participation in the opening ceremony of the Global Games of the Future 2025, a global sporting event that combines physical and digital competition. The tournament, hosted by the UAE after winning a competitive bid in 2024, reflects the country’s ambition to position itself as a global........