Following the news that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Defense and Tawazun Economic Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation on research and development (R&D) activities during the International Defence and Exhibition (IDEX) 2021;

Tushar M, Aerospace & Defense Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“This is a major development towards indigenization. The MoU will allow UAE’s MoD to focus on organizing R&D activities for the development of key technologies, including dual-use applications to strengthen the local ecosystem for weapon system development. It will also enable the UAE to fulfil its armed forces operational requirements locally and reduce the dependence on international conglomerates.

“Over the last few years, the UAE has been focusing on developing a powerful indigenous defence industry ecosystem by heavily investing in local companies and entering into strategic partnerships with leading global defence corporations.

“The country’s long-term plan of economic diversification is also a key factor, which encourages global players to enter the lucrative market. In addition, the modernization of armed forces to counter ongoing and future political conflicts in the region is a key factor to focus investments to develop local defense manufacturing.

“The recent Emirates Mars Mission is another example of this economic diversification plan, where the country’s focus on advanced technologies and being a hub for R&D has borne fruitful results. The UAE’s continued focus on defense manufacturing, and this R&D MoU, buoyed by its recent deal list, will allow it to focus on filling in the gaps that its industry does not have presently.”