In the face of strategic adversity that shakes the Arab and Muslim world, there is a need for a lifeline in times of calamities, God forbid. But because the destinies of nations and people are not left to chance, nor should it be so, leaders in whom God has put wisdom and discretion seek by all means to bridge the gaps, unite and strengthen the armor and build national unity based on building blocks that have been thoroughly considered.
Among these leaders is His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, who in the last conversation with the participants in the tasks and duties of national Emirati, inside and outside the State, during his visit to one of the citizens in the city of Al Ain, expressed a philosophy of work that seems simple but is deep in its sense, easy in its vocabulary but difficult in its implementation to those who find it challenging to figure out its secrets and keys. Indeed, His Highness said to the attendees: “We draw our strength in the face of challenges from our solid cohesion as one family under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God protect him, in this beloved country, and we stand together against the tendentious, the malevolent and the spiteful.”
National line-up, then, is the password and the key to this exuberant national spirit that soars in the sky of our beloved country, inhabits the hearts of its sons and runs in their veins like blood … It’s the spirit of the family, which is recognized by everyone on the good land of the UAE. In the UAE, these concepts walk on earth, and are not raised just for the sake of political and media marketing. We should not lose sight that this talk has taken place in one of the many encounters of His Highness with citizens, not in an official residence, so it was a talk from the heart, quickly seized by hearts that exchanged love with love, and did not require explanation, interpretation or analysis.
There is no doubt that those who track the footsteps of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan realize that he is following the footpaths of the founding father, the late His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul, and also follows the ways of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, may God preserve him. In fact, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed is keen to stay close to the people, groping demands and responding to aspirations, and is interested in the comfort of everyone, whether young or old, from all categories of society without discrimination. Actually, the experience of the UAE Renaissance has become one of maturity and vigor so that it can soar high in the sky of global competitiveness, to ensure a radiant future to the people of the UAE and the coming generations, God willing.
During this meeting, too, there is a scene that some might consider minor or transitory, but that I liked for the eloquent meanings it suggests- a kiss of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the hands of a young Emirati among the attendees. It is not only a paternalistic kiss, but a deep sense from a seasoned leader of the value of the young men of the future and the need to encourage and motivate them and instill love of the homeland and the values of loyalty and belonging in them. These are lessons that we derive from His Highness in every situation and occasion, and why not, while he is a graduate of one of the greatest political leadership schools in human history, the school of Zayed the good and generous, God rest his soul, a school, which will remain a beacon guiding the construction of States and nations, and the march along the paths of unity, cooperation and solidarity.
I think that the current historical stage in the Arab world is in dire need for two important things: first, faith in the value of Arab cooperation, unity and solidarity as it is the only way, an alternative of necessity, and an unavoidable option in the face of unprecedented challenges and threats in modern history. Second, national line-up and the maintaining of the national State sovereignty the preventing of the stretching and leakage of necrosis factors to its roots, the summoning of the cultural and humanitarian heritage as well as the values system of peoples, and its “re-installing” it in the memory of the new generations to ensure the existence of sufficient community immunity factors in the face of hurricanes of militancy, extremism and terrorism, as well as foreign plots, which do not stop in their search for loopholes and pitfalls allowing them access to the communities, in pursuit of planting discord, disintegration and division factors, and possibly civil strife.
