Fond memories of the first UAE visit from a US president on the eve of the second

Live updates: Follow the latest on Trump's Gulf trip It was cool with light rain during the visit of US President George W Bush to the UAE in January 2008, but the welcome was warm. Mr Bush made history with his arrival in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, January 13. It was the first time a sitting US president had visited the UAE . Next month, a second US president will arrive in the country. Donald Trump , the 47th holder of the office, will arrive in Abu Dhabi as part of a Middle East trip that includes Saudi Arabia and Qatar. This time, the weather should be equal to the welcome. The 17 years between the two visits have brought stable and convivial relations between the two countries in a world that is, as ever, full of uncertainty and dangers. The year 2008 would bring plunging stock markets, a war between Russia and a former part of the Soviet Union, deadly attacks by extremists on India and international concerns about Iran’s potential to build a nuclear weapon. Plus ca change, as they say. Air Force One arrived at Abu Dhabi International Airport after stops in Kuwait, Bahrain and Israel, while Mr Bush also visited the occupied West Bank. His motorcade headed for the Emirates Palace hotel, his base for the trip. Mr Bush addressed an audience in the main auditorium, praising the UAE for its tolerance and progress, and saying: “This new era is founded on the equality of all people before God.” Mr Bush was also shown a model of the Saadiyat Island project, where three great museums, Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Zayed National Museum and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi were to be built. Later he was entertained, along with US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, who was Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi at the time, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, at a traditional tented desert camp, complete with falcons and blazing fires to ward off the seasonal chill. On the second day of the visit, Monday, January 14, Mr Bush visited a damp Dubai, where the traffic was eased by the declaration of a public holiday. He later flew on to Saudi Arabia from the city, Air Force One having made the short hop to Dubai International Airport. Like Mr Bush, Mr Trump will be in his second term during his visit to the UAE, the difference being he both is the 45th and 47th presidents, having lost to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Mr Trump's first term was significant for the Abraham Accords, which helped to establish relations between Israel and several Arab countries, including the UAE. The spirit of reconciliation and tolerance is represented by the Abrahamic House, a complex in Abu Dhabi which includes a mosque, synagogue and church. While Mr Trump did not visit the UAE during his first term, he will be familiar with President Sheikh Mohamed. The two leaders have regularly spoken by telephone in recent months, with Sheikh Mohamed visiting Mr Trump in Washington as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces in May 2017. At the time, Mr Trump praised Sheikh Mohamed, calling him “an outstanding person whom I respect. I know how much he loves his country and I believe he loves the US as well". The two met again in Florida last year during a trip that included talks with Mr Biden, the first by a UAE President on American soil. Mr Trump will also visit Saudi Arabia and Qatar on the three-nation trip between May 13 and 16, which has the objective of strengthening ties with the three Gulf countries and seeking an end to the war in Gaza. While details of the itinerary have not been revealed, he could perhaps visit Saadiyat Island to see not just the Abrahamic Family House, but how those three museums – models on a plan during the first visit of an American president – have since become a reality for the second.

Fond memories of the first UAE visit from a US president on the eve of the second

Donald Trump will visit the Emirates 17 years after George W Bush's trip