The first part of this chronology treats as a unit the area which the Gulf Arab states now occupy. The second part traces events in the separate states from the dates at which they became fully sovereign and independent entities.
7000 B.C. Approximate date for which evidence exists of earliest human settlement in the area now occupied by the Gulf Arab states.
5500 B.C. Ubaid culture developed in Mesopotamia, present-day southern Iraq, and for approximately 2,000 years was dominant in the Gulf region.
5000 B.C. Approximate date at which tools first appeared on the Arab side of the Gulf.
3800 B.C. The first small coastal settlements in eastern Arabia appeared.
3000 B.C. The first recorded mention of Dilmun, the Gulf’s first distinct culture, which lasted nearly 2,000 years, dates to this time, although some scholars believe that the culture of this name arose as early as the first part of the fourth millennium B.C. By the end of the fourth millennium, Dilmun appears to have developed as a trading culture initially encompassing part of the eastern Arabian mainland and Bahrain, later including the island of Failaka off the coast of Kuwait. Around 2400 B.C., the center of Dilmun shifted from the Arabian mainland to Bahrain, and by 2100 B.C. the first city in the Gulf was built at the northern end of Bahrain, marking the start of half a millennium of prosperity for Dilmun. This sophisticated trading culture had close links to the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations to the north and those of the Indus Valley to the east. At roughly the same time as Dilmun, a linked, similarly advanced trading culture arose in the area of the United Arab Emirates. From the latter part of the second millennium B.C., Dilmun and the Gulf generally declined in economic and political importance and there is little record of developments until the mid or later first millennium.
2500 B.C. Evidence suggests that at about this time the dromedary camel was domesticated in Arabia, although some scholars suggest that the event occurred significantly later. It had profound importance inasmuch as it made possible nomadic life in the increasingly desiccated interior of Arabia, thus giving rise to Bedouin Arab culture.
690 B.C. The city of Gerrha was founded in eastern Arabia, a prosperous trading center that reflected the revival of Gulf prosperity.
550 B.C. The Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian state, was established under Cyrus the Great and extended a degree of influence over the Gulf. Before Cyrus’s conquest of the Babylonian Empire, the latter had, under Nebuchadnezzar and other rulers, exerted a significant degree of control over parts of the Gulf.
326 B.C. Alexander the Great, after destroying the Achaemenid Empire, sent out expeditions to explore the Gulf. He died in 323 B.C. on the eve of a contemplated conquest of the Arabian Peninsula. Alexander’s explorations made the Gulf region much better known to the outside world and led to a partial Hellenization of the Gulfs culture under his successors the Seleucids.
140 B.C. The Parthian Empire was established, conquered Seleucid territories in Persia and Mesopotamia, and proceeded to absorb eastern Arabia and part of southern Arabia, permitting it to control the trade routes of the Gulf. Over the next three centuries, the Parthians remained in constant conflict with the Roman Empire, which was expanding its power from the west.
A.D. 226 The Sassanians established their empire in Persia, defeated the Parthians whose position in the Gulf had greatly weakened, and extended their control to the Arabian shore of the Gulf. Their essential interest in the Gulf was to control trade and they appear to have ruled largely through alliances with local Arab tribes in key locations. Until the rise of Islam in the sixth century, constant Sassanian struggle with the Romans and their Byzantine successors had a major impact on developments in the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula. During the Sassanian period, Christianity was introduced in east Arabia and established a considerable presence.
A.D. 630 By this date, the Muslim community under the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad had embraced the entire Arabian Peninsula. After the Ridda Wars (Wars of Apostasy) A.D. 632-634 following the death of the Prophet Muhammad, Islam was firmly reestablished.
A.D. 661 The Umayyads established the first Islamic empire, with its capital in Damascus. Their rule extended to Arabia and the Gulf.
A.D. late seventh century An Ibadi imamate was established in Oman. The Ibadis are a moderate branch of the Kharijites (Seceders) who violently opposed the authority of the Umayyads. They represent the third of the significant branches of Islam together with Sunnis and Shi‘as. Although the community was at times without an imam and the imamate ceased to exist A.D. the 1950s, the majority of Omanis continue to be Ibadis.
A.D. 750 The Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads and founded an Islamic empire ruled from Baghdad. Their establishment of stability in the Gulf ushered in a great age of commerce, with Arab vessels dominating the Indian Ocean trade routes and reaching China. Although Abbasid rule continued nominally until the mid-13th century, it had ceased to be effective by the latter part of the ninth century. At that point, the Fatimid Empire, ruled from Cairo, shifted the principal trade route to the Red Sea, resulting in significant economic decline in the Gulf region.
A.D. late ninth to late 10th century A violent heretical sect, the Qaramita or Carmathians, established a state whose main center was on the east Arabian coast. The political anarchy that they created, together with the Zanj Revolt of Black slaves in southern Iraq, disrupted Gulf trade, which had flourished under early Abbasid rule. The establishment of the Fatimid Empire, ruled from Cairo after A.D. 969, diverted commerce from the Gulf to the Red Sea, further undermining its commerce.
A.D. mid 11th to mid 12th century The Seljuk Turks emerged in Central Asia, conquered Persia in A.D. 1040, seized Baghdad in A.D. 1055, and subsequently extended their control over the Gulf region. The Seljuks favored Central Asian trade over Gulf commerce, causing economic stagnation in eastern Arabia. With the collapse of the Seljuk sultanate in A.D. 1258, that area came under the influence of Persian successor states.
A.D. 1258 The Mongol leader Hulagu captured Baghdad, ending the Abbasid caliphate which had continued to exist formally although it had long since ceased to exercise real power. His dynasty ruled until A.D. 1335. The subsequent ascendancy of Mongol states in Persia and the eastern Arab world directed much of the East-West trade overland through Asia. This and the continued flow of trade through the Red Sea during the rule of the Ayyubids and Mamluks in Egypt continued to depress activity in the Gulf trade route.
1500 At the opening of the 16th century, the Portuguese established domination of the Indian Ocean, thereby initiating the impact of the modern West on Arabia. They proceeded to establish strong points in eastern Arabia, notably in Oman and on Bahrain, and remained the preeminent power in the Gulf for more than a century.
1501 The Safavids came to power in Persia and in the late 16th and early 17th centuries allied with the English to drive the Portuguese from the Gulf. In 1602, they occupied Bahrain, which remained in Persian hands, except for a brief period of Omani control, until 1782.
1600 The English East India Company was established and, in the ensuing decades, the English established a strong, eventually dominant, commercial position in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf.
1602 With the organization of the Dutch East India Company, the Netherlands initiated a long competition with Portugal and England for domination of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf. From 1630 to 1700, the Dutch held sway in the Gulf.
1650 The Portuguese lost their last outpost in the Gulf region when the Ya’rubids took Muscat and established their rule in Oman.
1663 The Banu Khalid tribe established control of the northern part of the Gulf Arab coast and maintained their dominance in the area for nearly a century.
1747 The Persians were expelled from Muscat for a final time and the Al Bu Said dynasty was established.
1756 The Al Sabah were established as the rulers of Kuwait. They were part of the Utub migration of tribes from central Arabia, which defeated the Banu Khalid and produced also the ruling families of Bahrain and Qatar, the Al Khalifah and the Al Thani.
1760 The Al Khalifah left Kuwait and settled in Qatar. By this same date, the shaikhs of the Qasimi (Arabic pl. Qawasim) clan had established their rule over present-day Sharjah and Ras al-Khaimah, which are still ruled by branches of that clan.
1761 The discovery of potable water on Abu Dhabi Island led to permanent settlement there and by the 1790s it had become the capital of the Bani Yas tribal confederation, the dominant power in the area and the current rulers of the emirate of Abu Dhabi.
1763 The Al Khalifah seized Bahrain and established their rule there while retaining claims to territory in Qatar.
1798 The British government entered into a treaty of mutual assistance with Sultan ibn Ahmad Al Bu Said, ruler of Muscat, which required the sultan to deny facilities to the French and Dutch rivals of the English. Shortly thereafter, a British “resident” was appointed to Muscat. These developments marked a deeper involvement of Great Britain in the Gulf region, pointing to the establishment of its imperium there.
1819 British naval forces attacked the town of Ras al-Khaimah in response to repeated attacks on English East India Company shipping commerce by Qawasim forces.
1820 The British government imposed a General Treaty of Peace on the Qasimi shaikhs, ending their maritime control of the lower Gulf. In the same year, the provisions of the treaty, which pledged the Gulf signatories to maintain a lasting peace with Great Britain, were extended to Bahrain. The document established the cornerstone of the system of treaties by which Great Britain maintained its dominant strategic, commercial, political, and diplomatic presence in the Gulf for the next century and a half.
1833 The Al Bu Falasah subsection of the Bani Yas declared itself independent of Abu Dhabi and occupied the small coastal village of Dubai. Under the rule of the Maktum clan, Dubai had become an important trading center by the late 19th century.
1834 The United States and Oman entered into a treaty of commerce and amity, the first diplomatic accord between the United States and a Gulf Arab state.
1835 Great Britain imposed a truce on the Bani Yas and the Qawasim, renewed annually until 1843 when it was extended for 10 years. In 1853, the “trucial system” was made permanent through the Treaty of Maritime Peace in Perpetuity.
1861 The terms of a treaty with the Al Khalifah committed Great Britain to protect the security and independence of that family’s possessions. In the same year, through the Canning Award, Great Britain settled a dispute over the succession to rule in Zanzibar, a possession of Muscat. The award established Zanzibar’s independence.
1867 Great Britain intervened to halt conflict between branches of the Al Khalifah on Bahrain and the Qatari mainland. This led to treaties in 1880 and 1892 that pledged the rulers of Bahrain not to enter into agreements with any state or government other than the British without the consent of the British government. Together with the earlier treaty of 1861, these agreements served to strengthen the dominant position of the Al Khalifah shaikhs in Bahrain and to increase greatly the degree of British intervention in Bahrain.
1891 The British government entered into an agreement with the sultan of Oman by which the latter committed himself and his heirs never to cede or otherwise dispose of any of their possessions to a foreign power other than Great Britain.
1892 “Exclusive agreements,” similar to the 1891 accord between Great Britain and Oman, were signed with the Trucial States.
1896 Mubarak the Great, founder of modern Kuwait, undertook a coup against his brothers, Muhammad and Jarrah, killing both, and proclaimed himself ruler in the only violent transfer of political authority in Kuwait’s history. His need for support against Ottoman claims to Kuwait and British concern over German and Russian plans for railway concession routes extending to Kuwait led to an 1899 agreement that established a close dependent relationship with Great Britain that endured until after independence in 1961.
1916 Great Britain and Qatar entered into an agreement along the lines of the exclusive agreements that the British had earlier made with Oman, the Trucial States, and Kuwait.
1920 The Treaty of Sib, in the form of letters between the representative of the Ibadi imamate of Oman and the sultan of Muscat under British aegis, formally acknowledged the split between the two authorities in what is now the unified Sultanate of Oman and established a basis for relations between them until the mid-1950s.
In the same year, the battle of Jahrah between Saudi forces and Kuwaiti troops ended in a Kuwaiti victory with the aid of British air and sea support. It confirmed Kuwait’s independence from the Saudi state.
1922 At the Uqair Conference, the British brokered an agreement to compensate the Saudis for territorial losses to Iraq at the expense of Kuwait, establishing definitive borders and considerably reducing Kuwait’s size.
The British signed agreements with the rulers of the Trucial States committing them not to give oil concessions to any company not supported by the British government.
1926 Charles Belgrave, a British citizen engaged by the British political agent in Bahrain, began a 30-year career as adviser to the rulers of Bahrain. He oversaw important infrastructural and administrative reforms.
1929 Through its Canadian subsidiary, Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO), Standard Oil Company of California (SoCal) negotiated a concession for oil exploration in Bahrain.
1932 BAPCO made the first oil strike on the Arab side of the Gulf. In the same year, Kuwait Oil Company was formed by the Gulf Oil Company of the United States and the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (later British Petroleum).
The British reached an agreement with the ruler of Sharjah for facilities to accommodate civilian aircraft of Imperial Airways, establishing a physical British presence on the Trucial States coast for the first time.
1935 The British added specific promises of assistance to earlier treaties with Qatar in return for the awarding of an oil concession to the Iraq Petroleum Company.
1938 The Kuwait Oil Company struck oil in the Burqan Field, one of the largest oilfields in the world, with exports beginning after World War II.
Merchants in both Kuwait and Dubai initiated reform movements. In Kuwait the merchants sought a greater say in governance and called for increased social services. They created Kuwait’s first political party, the National Bloc, and elected a legislative assembly, but the ruler dissolved the assembly and the movement failed. In Dubai, discontent among the merchants led to formation of a majlis or consultative council that sought to impose fiscal and other reforms on the ruler. Although the majlis was dissolved, some of its reforms were later implemented.
1940 Oil was discovered in commercial quantities in Qatar, but not exported in significant amounts until after World War II.
1947 The dissolution of the British Indian Empire through which British relations with the Gulf Arab states had been conducted shifted that responsibility briefly to the India Office in London, then to the Foreign Office in 1948.
1948 A disagreement between Abu Dhabi and Dubai over their border erupted into armed conflict. Its settlement involved the first deliberate involvement of the British government in the affairs of the Trucial States on land.
1951 The British government created the Trucial Oman Levies, renamed the Trucial Oman Scouts in 1956, in large part to provide security for oil exploration in the hinterland of the Trucial States. The TOS, whose security role later expanded, drew recruits from the tribes of the Trucial States and the adjacent area of Oman.
1952 The British recognized Fujairah as an independent emirate. In the same year, the British created the Trucial States Council to provide an informal consultative institution in which the rulers of the seven emirates could discuss matters of shared concern and offer recommendations to the political agent who represented British interests.
1955 With the breakdown of tribunal proceedings to resolve the question of ownership of the Buraimi area, the forces of the sultan of Muscat and Oman and of the ruler of Abu Dhabi, together with the Trucial Oman Levies, acted with the backing of the British government to dislodge Saudi Arabian occupying forces. The question was not resolved until after the independence of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 1971.
The sultan of Muscat defeated the forces of the imam of Oman, leading to the dissolution of the Ibadi Imamate, which had first been established in Oman A.D. the late seventh century. With the abdication of the imam, Oman was officially unified. In 1957 and 1959, attempts to restore the imamate were thwarted.
1956 Nationalist opponents of the Al Khalifah ruling family of Bahrain rioted in reaction to the Anglo-French-Israeli invasion of Suez. Assertion of firm government control ended an effort to establish a general assembly.
1958 Shaikh Rashid bin Said Al Maktum became ruler of Dubai, holding that position until his death in 1990, although incapacitated by a stroke in 1981.
1961 On June 19, Britain granted Kuwait independence, but Kuwait remained heavily dependent on British external support, tested almost immediately by Iraqi claims to Kuwait.
Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifah began a 38-year reign as ruler of Bahrain.
1962 Abu Dhabi shipped its first oil exports. The first commercial oilfield in Oman was discovered.
1965 At British initiative, a Development Office and a Development Fund were created as adjuncts of the Trucial States Council to promote development projects.
Opposition to the sultan of Oman took the form of an insurgency under the direction of the Dhofar Liberation Front.
1966 Shaikh Zayid bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan acted with British support to overthrow his brother Shakhbut, who had proven incapable of dealing with the challenges of sudden oil wealth, and became ruler of Abu Dhabi.
1968 On January 16, the British Labour government announced that Britain would withdraw all military forces from the Gulf by the end of 1971, indicating the end of its special relationship with and protection of the Gulf Arab states. In the following month, the rulers of Abu Dhabi and Dubai formed a union as the first move toward coping with British withdrawal.
In Oman, radical leftist elements took control of the revolt against the sultan, forming the Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arabian Gulf (PFLOAG), with support from the USSR, China, and Iraq.
Dubai shipped its first oil exports.
1969 The Nixon Doctrine as applied in the Gulf region took the form of the Twin Pillar policy, which entailed increased military assistance to Saudi Arabia and Iran to enable them to play a larger role in defending interests shared with the United States. Their ultimate security against great power threats remained dependent on U.S. “over-the-horizon” forces. Saudi Arabia’s weakness and Gulf Arab suspicion of Iran limited the real impact of the doctrine, and the shah’s fall in 1979 rendered it inoperative.
1970 Iran pressed longstanding claims to Bahrain as the British government prepared to withdraw its protection. However, the shah’s government accepted the results of a United Nations determination in May that the Bahraini people wished to be independent, not ruled by Iran.
The June victory of the Conservatives in the British parliamentary elections raised expectations that they might implement their previous policy of not withdrawing from the Gulf. The new government appointed Sir William Luce, previously the senior British official posted to the Gulf, as special adviser to the foreign secretary on the Gulf. In the summer of 1970, he began a series of discussions with Gulf rulers that led the government in March of the following year to affirm the policy of withdrawal.
In July, the sultan’s son Qabus, acting with British support and encouragement, overthrew his father, Said bin Taimur, and became the ruler of Oman.
1971 Bahrain declared its independence on August 31.
Qatar declared its independence on September 1.
On November 29, Iran occupied part of the island of Abu Musa through an agreement with the emirate of Sharjah, whose claims to the island had been upheld by the British. On the following day, the eve of the formation of the United Arab Emirates as an independent state, Iran seized the neighboring Tunbs islands by force from their owner, the emirate of Ras al-Khaimah. To the present, the UAE federal government has continued to protest the Iranian occupation of the islands without result.
On December 2, the process of British withdrawal from military defense commitments east of Suez, including the Gulf region, was completed. Since this process had long been underway, the date was of primarily symbolic significance, marking the end of British protection of the smaller Gulf Arab states and the shifting of responsibility for Gulf security from Great Britain to the United States.
The United Arab Emirates, comprising Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Sharjah, and Umm al-Qaiwain, was established as an independent federation on December 2. Ras al-Khaimah became the seventh and final member of the federation the following February.
1972 The Gulf Arab states, led by Ahmed Zaki Yamani, Saudi Arabia’s oil minister, negotiated “participation” agreements beginning in March with oil companies operating in the Gulf. These led initially to 20 percent government ownership of the companies, which increased over the next several years to full ownership of their assets. The oil-producing members of the UAE federation and Oman, however, continued to permit private companies to hold equity in concessions.
1973 King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, angered by the massive U.S. military resupply of Israel during the October Arab-Israeli War, which he believed betrayed assurances from President Richard Nixon, persuaded most Arab oil-exporters to impose an embargo on oil exports to the United States and the Netherlands and a reduction in exports to other oil importing countries. This had the effect of dramatically ratcheting upward the prices received for oil exports and accelerating the process of “participation.”
1974 U.S. ambassadors were accredited to Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. Since 1971, the U.S. ambassador in Kuwait had served as non-resident ambassador to those states after their independence.
1976 The ruler of Saudi Arabia, King Khalid bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, led efforts to promote a common defense system for the Gulf Arab states. Joint military exercises were held in 1979.
At the initiative of Prince Naif bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Saudi interior minister, a council was established to formalize Gulf Arab state cooperation on internal security affairs.
1978 The Camp David Accords of September, which grew out of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s dramatic initiative in going to Jerusalem in November of the preceding year, drew a negative reaction from the Gulf Arab states, with the exception of Oman, which was ambiguously supportive.
1979 In January, the shah left Iran in the face of serious unrest, and in February Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini returned to Iran and rapidly consolidated his control, preparing the way for the establishment of an Islamic (Shi‘a) republic. These developments caused extreme anxiety in the conservative (Sunni) Gulf Arab states.
At the Arab summit in Baghdad following the conclusion of the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty in March, the Gulf Arab states reluctantly acceded to the Iraqi initiative to punish Egypt for concluding a separate peace, isolating it from the Arab world. All except Oman broke diplomatic relations with Egypt.
In December, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, creating a potential military threat to the Gulf region and adding to its political leverage over the states in the area.
1980 In January, the Carter Doctrine was issued, stating that expansion of a Soviet military presence in the direction of the Gulf “would be a very serious threat to the security and economic well-being of the entire Western world.” Accordingly, the doctrine committed the use of U.S. force in the event of such Soviet action. The Carter Doctrine effectively displaced the Nixon Doctrine in defining U.S. security policy in the Gulf.
In September, Iraq, reacting to various Iranian provocations, invaded its neighbor. The eight-year war that ensued would threaten the security of the Gulf Arab states.
1981 In May, following preparatory meetings in Riyadh and Muscat, the first Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit was held in Abu Dhabi. The GCC, in large measure a reaction to the Islamic revolution in Iran and the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War, brought together Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman in a regional organization designed to promote policies of cooperation and mutual support. Initially, despite the obvious role of security threats in creating the council, its economic rationale was emphasized. Within a few months, at the urging of Oman and in reaction to Iraqi reverses on the battlefront in Khuzistan, the military dimension began and continued to receive greatly increased attention.
1983 In May, the GCC finance ministers approved a uniform customs tariff for the six member states, which was put into effect by November 1983.
1984 In May, the Gulf Investment Corporation, authorized by the GCC in 1982, began operations as the first joint venture established under the aegis of the GCC.
1985 In October, the defense ministers of the GCC states completed plans for a 5,000-man joint military force, Peninsula Shield, that was formally launched in the following year.
1986 In November, Kuwait, the target of Shi‘a terrorism on its territory and of Iranian attacks on its tankers in the Gulf, informed the other GCC states that it would seek “international protection” for its ships. In December, Kuwait approached both the United States and the USSR to seek protection under “reflagging.”
1986-87 In the latter part of 1986 and early 1987, the revelation of U.S. military aid to Iran, the “Iran Contra scandal,” shook Gulf Arab state confidence in the reliability of U.S. support.
1987 In March, both Washington and Moscow agreed to protect Kuwaiti tankers and, in the following months, proceeded to implement those agreements. The United States, which took the lead role in the re-flagging operations, considerably increased its naval presence in the Gulf, based at Jufair in Bahrain.
1988 In July, a ceasefire ended eight years of bloody warfare between Iraq and Iran, which had posed a constant threat to the Gulf Arab states.
1990 On August 2, Iraq invaded Kuwait, rapidly overrunning and occupying its territory. Within a week, the UN Security Council had declared the annexation null and void and President George H. W. Bush had demanded complete and unconditional Iraqi withdrawal, backing up his declaration with the deployment of U.S. air and naval forces in the Gulf. The Gulf Arab states all contributed financial and military support to the coalition organized by the United States under the name Desert Shield.
1991 On January 17, operation Desert Storm commenced with air attacks against Iraq. Brief ground operations, in which elements of a 10,000-man GCC force participated, drove Iraqi forces from Kuwait at the end of February.
In December, the USSR was dissolved. The dissolution of the Soviet Union removed a major external actor from the Gulf, one that had represented a political and strategic threat. Only Kuwait had maintained formal relations with the Soviet Union for a significant period of time. All the Gulf Arab states established relations with the Russian Federation and the other successor states of the USSR.
1991-95 In the wake of the 1991 Gulf War and the continuing threat from Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Gulf Arab states confirmed or established security pacts with the United States calling for the prepositioning of military matériel and other forms of strategic cooperation.
1998 President William J. Clinton’s defense secretary, William Cohen, launched the Cooperative Defense Initiative (CDI), linking the Gulf Arab states to an early warning network. CDI was designed to help them to develop indigenous responses to attacks with weapons of mass destruction.
1999 In November, the heads of state decided to establish a GCC Customs Union, to come into full effect in March 2005. The union, which was designed to remove duties, fees, taxes, and other hindrances to trade among the six GCC member states, was projected to be step toward a Gulf common market.
2000 At the December annual summit, the GCC heads of state signed a common defense pact that committed each state to support any member state facing an external threat.
2001 Following the September 11 al-Qa‘eda terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, DC, the Gulf Arab states all permitted the United States to use their territories to fly missions against the Taliban and al-Qa‘eda in Afghanistan.
2002/2003 All the Gulf Arab states provided support to the U.S.-led coalition in its military build-up and action against Iraq, with Kuwait and Qatar generally supportive from an early date and the others later and more reluctantly.
2003 On January 1, the first phase of implementation of the GCC Customs Union was initiated, embracing export, re-export, and transit trade procedures as well as free movement of national goods.
2004 On January 1, the second implementation phase of the GCC Customs Union was inaugurated, focusing on consolidation of the actions taken to that point in anticipation of the union’s full implementation in March 2005.
In July, the People’s Republic of China and the GCC signed a trade and economic cooperation agreement.
On September 13, the Gulf Arab ministers urged Syria to respect a UN Security Council resolution demanding that it withdraw its troops from Lebanon.
In October, agreement was reached on a unified law to organize the GCC’s industrial sector. The agreement is intended to increase the contribution of industrial production to the GCC’s collective gross domestic product.
2005 In November, the Gulf Arab states joined Egypt and Saudi Arabia in behind-the-scenes diplomacy to press Syria to cooperate in the UN-sponsored inquiry into the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, on February 14.
The 26th GCC summit concluded on December 19 and issued a communiqué indicating that implementation of a customs union, which had been scheduled for 2005, would be deferred to the end of 2007. The council called for completion of the requirements for establishing a GCC common market in the same time frame. Positive statements about the 15 December parliamentary elections in Iraq and muted statements about Iran’s nuclear energy program masked the GCC countries’ intense fears of the threat of civil war in Iraq and concern over ultimate Iranian aims. While previous GCC summit communiqués included a rejection of Iranian claims to the Tunbs and Abu Musa islands, seized from Ras al-Khaimah and Sharjah on the eve of UAE independence, and supported the UAE claim to them, it was omitted this time.
2006 On January 15, Kuwait’s ruler, Shaikh Jabir, died. The National Assembly overruled the succession of Crown Prince Saad because of his physical incapacity, then confirmed Foreign Minister Shaikh Sabah as ruler. The assertion of parliamentary prerogatives in Kuwait was viewed in the other Gulf states as possibly creating demands for the grant of greater powers to their assemblies.
In July, Oman instituted labor law reforms covering both domestic and immigrant workers and timed to assure approval in the U.S. Congress of a U.S.-Oman free trade agreement. Oman’s action was expected to pressure other Gulf Arab states that have not done so to institute such reforms.
1971 On August 14, Bahrain declared its independence and signed a treaty of friendship with Great Britain. Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifah became emir, and the Council of State became a cabinet called the Council of Ministers.
On December 23, Bahrain and the United States signed an agreement permitting the latter to rent naval and military facilities at Jufair, the former British base. The agreement signaled the transition from British to American responsibility for the security of the Gulf.
1972 In December, a constituent Assembly was elected by native Bahraini male voters to create a constitution and establish a National Assembly.
1973 The constitution, approved in June, entered into force on December 6. It gave the vote to male citizens 20 and older, declared the ruler’s position to be hereditary with succession to the eldest son, and established a legislature with very limited powers. The election for the Assembly a few days later created “leftist” and “religious conservative” blocs.
1975 On August 26, the emir dissolved the Assembly and ruled by decree following a deadlock between the legislative body and the cabinet, because of disagreement over several issues including continuation of the U.S. Navy’s lease of facilities at Jufair.
1977 Upon expiration of the U.S. leasing arrangement of 1971, it was replaced by a new one that no longer designated Jufair as home base for the U.S. Middle East Force because of Bahraini political sensibilities.
1981 On December 13, the Interior Ministry announced the arrest of several dozen saboteurs alleged to be members of the Tehran-based Islamic Front for the Liberation of Bahrain and accused them of conspiring to overthrow the government on 16 December, Bahrain’s National Day. The chargé d’affaires of the Iranian embassy in Manama was implicated in the plot and expelled.
1986 On April 26, Qatari troops landed on Fasht al-Dibal, a reef recently reclaimed by Bahrain in a long-standing dispute with Qatar, and captured foreign workers who were constructing a coast guard station. Saudi and Omani mediation averted a wider conflict.
On November 26, the King Fahd Causeway opened, linking Bahrain to the mainland of Saudi Arabia.
1987-88 Bahrain’s vital assistance in servicing U.S. warships during the “reflagging” of Kuwaiti tankers to protect them from Iranian attacks cemented the American-Bahraini security relationship.
1990 Bahrain played a key role in providing support services for coalition naval forces during the U.S.-led Desert Shield build-up following Iraq’s seizure of Kuwait in August 1990.
1991 During the January-February 1991 Desert Storm military operations against Iraq, Bahrain continued to be the regional center of support for the U.S.-led coalition forces in addition to participating directly in Desert Storm as part of the GCC Peninsula Shield Force.
In July, Qatar unilaterally took to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) its claim to the Hawar Islands, Fasht al-Dibal, and Qitat Jaradah when Bahrain refused to join in the referral.
On October 27, Bahrain signed a defense cooperation agreement with the United States calling for joint military exercises.
1993 In January, a new Consultative Council was formed with members drawn from business, professional, religious, and academic backgrounds, a number of whom had served in the National Assembly suspended since 1975. The council’s role was limited to commenting on draft legislation prior to the ruler’s action on it.
1994 In December, demonstrations followed the arrest of a Shi‘a cleric, Shaikh Ali Salman, who called for the restoration of the National Assembly and criticized the ruling family.
1995 On January 15, Shaikh Ali Salman was deported and sought asylum in Great Britain.
On February 15, Bahrain rejected International Court of Justice mediation in its territorial dispute with Qatar.
On June 26, the reshuffled cabinet included five Shi‘a ministers.
1996 On January 18, following bomb explosions in Manama’s business quarter, a Shi‘a cleric, Shaikh Abdul-Amir al-Jamri, was arrested.
On June 3, the government announced that it had uncovered a coup plot by an Iranian-backed group, Hezbollah-Bahrain. Bahrain recalled its ambassador to Iran and downgraded its representation to the chargé d’affaires level.
1997 On April 1, Bahrain took full ownership of Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO), which had been a subsidiary of Caltex Petroleum Corporation until 1975, when “participation” was initiated.
1998 In February, Ian Henderson, a British national who had long served as director of Security and Intelligence Services, was dismissed and replaced by Shaikh Khalid bin Muhammad bin Salman Al Khalifah.
From December 16 to 19, Bahrain provided military facilities for “Operation Desert Fox,” the U.S. and British bombing campaign against Iraq.
1999 The emir, Shaikh Isa, died on March 6, succeeded by his eldest son, Shaikh Hamad. On March 9, Hamad’s son, Shaikh Salman, was declared crown prince. The new ruler moved quickly to draft a National Charter calling for reinstatement of an elected legislature as well as press and religious freedoms.
On December 29, the visit of the emir of Qatar, Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifah Al Thani, to Bahrain led to establishment of a committee to settle territorial disputes between the two countries.
2000 In September, the emir appointed non-Muslims and women to the Consultative Council for the first time; one of the four women was a Christian and a Jewish businessman was also included.
2001 In a February referendum, over 98 percent of eligible voters endorsed the charter issued in 1999.
In March 2001, the International Court of Justice issued a ruling that resolved Bahrain’s 60-year territorial dispute with Qatar, awarding the Hawar Islands to Bahrain.
2002 On February 14, a package of reforms was issued which declared Bahrain to be a constitutional monarchy (the emir would henceforth be king) and allowed women to stand for office.
In May, local elections were held and for the first time women voted and ran as candidates; none, however, was elected.
In October, elections to the lower house of the Legislative Assembly were held with a turnout of over 50 percent. Despite a Shi‘a call for a boycott, 19 of the 40 lower house seats went to Islamists. No women candidates were elected; the king appointed several women to the upper house of the Assembly.
2003 The impending collapse of two government-managed pension plans led opposition deputies in the elected lower house to defy government objections and form a commission to investigate alleged irregularities in the funds’ management.
2004 Nada Haffadh was appointed minister of health, becoming the first woman to head a government ministry in the Gulf Arab states.
On May 21, Shi‛a protestors demonstrated against U.S. military action in the Iraqi city of Najaf. The king dismissed the interior minister, his uncle, Shaikh Muhammad bin Khalifa, for trying to prevent the demonstration.
In early July, fears of possible attacks by Islamic extremists led the U.S. government to evacuate the families of U.S. servicemen and diplomats from Bahrain. Bahraini authorities arrested six people suspected of planning terrorist attacks.
2005 In July, a law was passed that permits political societies, sanctioned since 2001, to register formally.
2006 On January 11, President Bush signed legislation implementing the U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement, making Bahrain the first Gulf Arab state to enter into such an agreement with the United States.
1961 On June 19, Kuwait became independent as Great Britain relinquished responsibility for the country’s military protection and conduct of foreign relations and Shaikh Abdullah al-Salim Al Sabah became emir. Almost immediately, President Abdel Karim Kassem of Iraq declared Kuwait to be part of that country, and the emir requested British help to avoid a takeover. A small British military force, later replaced by an Arab League force, averted the threat.
1962 In November, the constitution drafted by a constituent assembly elected the previous December was approved.
1963 In January, elections were held for Kuwait’s first National Assembly, the first elected legislative body in the Gulf Arab states.
1965 Emir Abdullah al-Salim died and was succeeded by Shaikh Sabah al-Salim, who had served as Kuwait’s first foreign minister since independence.
1967 The second elections for the National Assembly were held amid charges of government interference and election irregularities.
1971 New elections for the National Assembly were held. In 1973 the Assembly rejected the government’s participation agreement with the Kuwait Oil Company, demanding a more far-reaching settlement and creating government concern over the power of the opposition.
1975 Elections for the fourth Assembly produced a greater degree of opposition than the emir was prepared to tolerate.
1976 In August, the emir dissolved the Assembly and imposed new restrictions on the press and on public assembly.
The government established the Reserve Fund for Future Generations. Initiated with funding of $7 billion, the government resolved to invest 10 percent of its revenues each year in the fund.
1977 In December, Sabah al-Salim died and was succeeded by Shaikh Jabir al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah.
1980 The Iran-Iraq War broke out in September and for its duration Kuwait supported Iraq with massive “loans” totaling approximately $40 billion and by making its territory available on occasion for transit of troops and matériel.
1981 In February, elections were held to choose the fifth Assembly. The government encouraged Islamist candidates to counter the progressive bloc, which had vocally opposed government policies. Islamists and pro-government Bedouins increased their strength in the Assembly.
1982 The Suq al-Manakh, an unofficial stock market, collapsed following massive speculative stock purchases with postdated checks. This led to political tensions when members of the ruling family were seen to receive preferential treatment in proposed bailouts for their losses. The issue was not finally resolved until 1998.
1985 Elections were held for the sixth Assembly, which met only twice. Political tensions, largely generated by the Iran-Iraq War, reached their peak with a public assassination attempt against the emir.
1985-86 Concerns over domestic security, especially Iran’s perceived influence with Kuwait’s Shi‘a minority, prompted the deportation of thousands of expatriates, many of them Iranians.
1986 The emir suspended the Assembly and introduced measures curtailing civil and political rights.
1990 In July, President Saddam Hussein of Iraq, angered by Kuwaiti oil production that exceeded its OPEC quota, its refusal to formally forgive the “loans” made to Iraq during its war with Iran or cede or lease to Iraq two islands adjacent to Iraq’s Umm Qasr naval base, and alleged Kuwaiti theft of oil from the shared Rumailah field on their common border, threatened military action against Kuwait.
On August 2, Iraq invaded and shortly thereafter annexed Kuwait as a province. The emir and the cabinet fled to Saudi Arabia.
1991 When Iraq failed to comply with a UN resolution that ordered it to withdraw from Kuwait, a U.S.-led coalition, including military forces from the Gulf Arab states, undertook air and ground attacks against Iraq starting on January 17. By the end of February, Kuwaiti territory had been liberated.
In March, the emir returned and imposed a three-month period of martial law. The government cut off aid to those Arab states that had sympathized with Iraq and the bulk of the large Palestinian community was expelled, because of Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat’s support of Saddam Hussein. Many Palestinians suffered harsh official treatment, including execution.
In September, Kuwait and the United States initialed a security agreement providing for periodic joint military exercises.
By the end of the year, most of the extensive infrastructural damage inflicted by Iraq had been repaired and the hundreds of oil well fires set by retreating Iraqi forces were extinguished.
1992 The emir yielded to domestic and international pressure and agreed to new elections for the Assembly, which were held in October. Anti-government candidates won a large majority, with the majority of those running on religious platforms.
1993 In January, the UN completed demarcation of the Iraq-Kuwait border, following which Iraq made several incursions into Kuwaiti territory. U.S. troops were dispatched to Kuwait following these actions.
1994 In November, Iraq recognized Kuwait’s political independence, its territorial integrity, and the UN-demarcated border. However, it failed to make this recognition unequivocal in the years immediately following.
1996 The Assembly elected in October contained a majority of pro-government members.
1999 The emir suspended the Assembly following a contentious disagreement between delegates and the cabinet over misprints in an edition of the Qur’an printed by the Ministry of Justice, Awqaf (religious endowments), and Religious Affairs. New elections were held within the constitutionally mandated 60 days, for the first time, strengthening the representation of Islamists in the Assembly.
2001 In April, Kuwait and the United States agreed on a 10-year renewal of the pact that permitted the United States to use Kuwaiti facilities and station troops and equipment on its territory.
2002 At the March Arab League summit in Beirut, Kuwait and Iraq moved toward normalizing relations, with Iraq promising not to invade Kuwait again.
2003 Kuwait served as the principal staging ground for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, launched on March 20 to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction and oust Saddam Hussein from power.
July elections to the Assembly result in strong representation for both Islamist and pro-government members. Progressive candidates suffered major losses.
The emir appointed Shaikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al Sabah prime minister, separating that post from the role of heir apparent for the first time since independence.
2004 In May, the cabinet approved a draft law to allow women to vote and run for the Assembly.
In August, Iraq and Kuwait announced resumption of diplomatic relations, broken since Iraq’s 1990 invasion, and Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi assured Kuwait that Iraq would uphold the UN resolutions demarcating the countries’ joint border and providing for war reparations.
The October visit of President Ghazi al-Yawar was the first visit ever by an Iraqi head of state.
2005 In May, the parliament voted to give women the right to vote and stand for elective office. In June, Kuwait’s first woman cabinet minister was appointed when Dr. Massouma Almubarak was selected as minister of planning.
2006 On January 15, the emir, Shaikh Jabir, died and, in accordance with the Kuwaiti law of succession, Crown Prince Saad al-Abdullah succeeded him. However, Saad’s poor health caused the parliament to vote to remove him from the succession and, on January 29, to confirm Foreign Minister Sabah al-Ahmad as emir.
On May 21, the emir announced the dissolution of the parliament, the fourth time such an action had been taken, ending Kuwait’s 10th parliament since independence in 1961. The action followed electoral reform demands of members of parliament and their popular supporters, which initiated a national dialogue about political corruption and alarmed the government.
On June 29, elections for parliament were held, with women participating both as voters and candidates for the first time. No women candidates were elected, but male candidates were forced to consider women’s issues in their campaigns.
On July 1, the cabinet resigned following the election of a parliamentary majority in favor of reducing the number of political constituencies from 25 to five as a means of making elections more honest and representative.
1970 In July, Qabus bin Said, the son of Sultan Said bin Timor, conspired with disaffected members of Said’s government and key British advisers to overthrow his father and assume his position as sultan. The country’s name was then changed from Sultanate of Muscat and Oman to Sultanate of Oman.
1971 The Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arabian Gulf (PFLOAG) absorbed the National Democratic Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arab Gulf (NDFLOAG) and became the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arab Gulf (PFLOAG), reflecting the assertion of Marxist control over the anti-government rebellion.
In December, the power struggle between Sultan Qabus and his uncle, Tariq bin Taimur, who had served as prime minister since the accession of Qabus, was resolved when Tariq resigned his position. Qabus assumed the prime ministership himself, in addition to the defense and finance portfolios. He created a Council of Ministers with himself as chair.
1974 In May, PFLOAG was reconstituted as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman (PFLO), reflecting the weakened state of the rebellion. British, Iranian, and Jordanian forces assisted the Sultan’s Armed Forces (SAF) in countering the rebels.
1975 By the end of the year, the rebellion was effectively contained, defeated both by military action and considerable economic assistance lavished on Dhofar Province, where the rebellion had arisen.
1976 The sultan reorganized regional and local government by establishing 37 (subsequently 59) districts, one province, and a municipality that included the capital, Muscat. Dhofar, historically a separate sultanate, was given provincial status and greater local autonomy than the other regions.
1978 In September, Qabus was the only Arab leader to signal his support for the Camp David Accords, mediated by President Jimmy Carter as the basis for peace between Egypt and Israel.
1979 Oman split with the rest of the Arab world (except Morocco), in not breaking relations with Egypt when that country signed a peace treaty with Israel in April.
1980 Oman concluded agreements with the United States for access to military facilities.
1981 In October, the creation of the State Consultative Council (SCC) marked the first time during the rule of the Al Bu Said dynasty that a political institution was established to sound out public opinion. The SCC was designed as a purely advisory body.
1983 The SCC was expanded from 45 to 55 members, with “popular” representatives of the business community and various regions meeting with 19 government officials.
In October, full diplomatic relations were established with the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY) or South Yemen, which had previously supported the rebellion against the Omani government.
1986 In September, Sultan Qabus University was established to provide higher education for both male and female students.
1990 In August, the sultan opened Oman’s air bases for the use of Western allied forces following Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait.
In November, the sultan announced the establishment of a new Consultative Council for the following year, comprising members selected from the country’s 59 districts. Regional representatives would select three candidates for each district, of which one would be selected subject to the sultan’s approval.
1992 Oman signed a bilateral defense treaty with the United States.
In October, Oman signed a border delineation agreement with Yemen.
1994 The Consultative Council’s membership was increased from 59 to 80 and women were eligible to be nominated. The powers of the council were extended to include review of social and economic legislation and participation in drafting and implementing development plans.
In May, hundreds of “opponents” of the government, including high-ranking officials and members of prominent families, were arrested for advocating government reform. They were later released.
In December, the Israeli prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, made an official visit to Oman to discuss the Middle East peace process.
1996 In January, Oman and Israel agreed to establish low-level diplomatic relations, establishing trade bureaus in each country.
In November, the sultan issued the Basic Statute of the State, in effect a constitution, which created an Oman Council, combining the Consultative Council with a new Council of State, the latter comprising prominent appointed citizens. The statute also provided rules for the succession to Sultan Qabus.
1997 In October, elections were held for the Consultative Council, with both men and women eligible to vote.
2000 In September, approximately 100,000 Omani men and women elected 83 candidates, including two women, to seats in the Consultative Council. Also in September, Oman ended its low-level official relations with Israel when the Palestinian intifada or uprising broke out.
2001 Following the September 11 terrorist attacks against the New York World Trade Center and the Pentagon, U.S. forces use Omani bases in operations against the Taliban and al-Qa‘eda in Afghanistan.
2002 In November, the sultan extended voting rights to all citizens 21 or over, ending the system whereby a selected portion of the population could vote.
2003 In January, Oman and the UAE ratified an agreement establishing their common border.
In October, the first elections since the extension of voting rights were held.
2004 In July, Oman and the United States signed a framework accord intended to pave the way to a free trade agreement.
2005 In January, the government rounded up “Islamists” accused of promoting “religious extremism,” but Oman did not appear to face a serious Islamist threat.
In the course of the year, Oman signed several agreements with foreign investors to boost oil reserves, build an oil smelter-power station-desalination facility complex, and develop a national mobile telephone network.
2006 On January 19, the United States and Oman signed a free trade agreement (FTA).
In July, Oman undertook labor reforms to protect the rights of both domestic and immigrant workers. The action was taken after urging from the U.S. government and was intended to secure a positive vote on the FTA in the U.S. House of Representatives, following the Senate’s approval in June.
1971 On September 3, Qatar declared its independence, following 55 years during which Great Britain conducted its external affairs and provided protection against foreign threats.
1972 In a palace coup, Shaikh Ahmad Al Thani was ousted by his cousin Shaikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani. Shortly afterward, an Advisory Council was established with members appointed by the ruler and having little authority.
1980 From the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War in September 1980, Qatar supported Iraq but tried to cultivate tolerable relations with Iran, because of Qatar’s Shi‘a minority and sensitive maritime border shared with Iran in an area of vast gas reserves.
1986 On April 26, Qatar landed troops on the reef of Fasht al-Dibal, territory in dispute between Qatar and Bahrain, and captured foreign workers who were constructing a Bahraini coast guard station. A wider conflict was averted through Saudi and Omani mediation.
1990 Following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait on August 2, Qatar announced that it would permit foreign military forces on its soil.
1991 Qatari troops participated in the Desert Storm military operation to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation.
1992 In January, a group of 50 leading citizens petitioned the government to establish an assembly with legislative powers and to undertake economic and educational reforms. As an indirect response, the government reorganized the Council of Ministers.
In September, a border clash with Saudi Arabia disturbed traditionally close relations with that neighbor.
1993 Bilateral talks were initiated with Saudi Arabia to resolve the disputed border.
1995 In March, Qatar signed an agreement giving the United States permission to preposition military equipment on its territory.
On June 26, Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifa deposed his father, Shaikh Khalifa bin Hamad, in a carefully prepared move that assured a smooth transition. The new ruler favored a more forward foreign policy than his father and had been in charge of day-to-day affairs for three years.
1996 In February, a coup against the emir was discovered and foiled.
In April, Al-Jazeera TV was launched as an independent satellite channel funded by the emir, but intended to operate as a non-government entity. Al-Jazeera broadcast to the Arab world and beyond, acquiring a large audience for its news coverage and commentary, which, for the first time in the Arab world, dealt with controversial issues and criticized foreign government officials.
Also in April, Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres visited Qatar as part of its increasingly independent policy on the Arab-Israeli conflict and in connection with continuing efforts to establish economic ties with Israel.
In July, following the election of Benjamin Netanyahu as Israeli prime minister, Qatar cancelled plans to open a trade office in Israel. An Israeli trade office remained in Doha.
On October 23, the emir named his third son, 18-year-old Jassim, as heir apparent. At the same time, the emir relinquished the office of prime minister to his brother, Shaikh Abdullah. Soon after these actions, the Qatari government reached a settlement with deposed ruler, Shaikh Khalifah, over billions of dollars of funds missing since his ouster.
1998 Early in the year, the faltering of the Arab-Israeli peace process led to abandonment of plans for possible export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Israel.
1999 On March 8, elections for Qatar’s new Central Municipal Council were held, the first in Qatar’s history and the first direct election in any Gulf Arab state in which women could vote and run for office.
2000 In February, a cousin of the emir and 32 other people were imprisoned for life for planning the attempted coup in 1996.
2001 In March, Qatar and Bahrain agreed to accept the decision of the International Court of Justice on the territorial dispute between the two nations. The agreement, which gave the Hawar Islands to Bahrain, satisfied both and ended over six decades of bitter dispute, with diplomatic relations established between them for the first time. At the same time, the border dispute with Saudi Arabia, effectively resolved in 1996, was settled with a final demarcation of the border.
In September, the United States began to use al-Sayliyah and al-Udhaid bases for operations against the Taliban and al-Qa‘eda in Afghanistan.
2003 In March and April, al-Udhaid began to serve as the major U.S. air operations center for the Middle East, transferred from the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.
In April, voters approved a new constitution, which provided for a 45-member assembly, with 30 elected members and the balance selected by the emir.
In August, the emir replaced his son, Jassim, with a younger son, Tamim, as heir apparent.
2004 On February 13, Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, former president of Chechnya who was a resident of Qatar, was killed by a car bomb. Within a week, two Russian agents were arrested and charged with the killing.
On June 9, the emir promulgated the country’s first written constitution, which had been approved the previous April.
On June 30, a Qatari court sentenced to life in prison (25 years by Qatari law) the two Russian agents charged in the assassination of the former Chechen president. The court stated that the Russian government had ordered the killing.
2005 In January, after an appellate court had rejected the appeal of their life sentences, the emir ordered the assassins to be returned to Russia to complete their sentences in a Russian prison. They were apparently released shortly after their return.
In October, Qatar became the first Gulf Arab state to gain election to the United Nations Security Council.
2006 In April, Qatar froze negotiations with the United States on a free trade agreement (FTA), following U.S. pressure on Qatar to reform its labor laws.
1971 On December 2, the former Trucial States of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Qaywayn, and Fujayrah formed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) upon the termination of the United Kingdom’s special treaty relationship with them. Zayid bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan’s fellow rulers elect him president. He would be reelected every five years, serving until his death in 2004.
1972 In January, the former ruler of Sharjah, Saqr bin Sultan, attempted a coup following anger over the ruler’s agreement with the shah of Iran to divide sovereignty over Abu Musa Island. The ruler, Khalid bin Muhammad, was killed but the coup failed, and Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi became ruler.
In February, the Federal National Council (FNC) was created as a 40-member consultative body whose members are appointed by the seven emiral rulers.
In February, Ras al-Khaymah became the seventh member of the UAE, having held aloof because of anger over loss of the Tunbs Islands to Iran and the hope that an oil strike would give it more weight in the new federation.
1973 A federal civil service was created, based mainly in Abu Dhabi, the provisional capital of the UAE.
1974 In August, Shaikh Zayid and King Faisal of Saudi Arabia signed an agreement that settled the long-standing Buraimi dispute between Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, paved the way to demarcation of the Saudi-UAE border, and won Saudi diplomatic recognition of the UAE.
In September, Shaikh Hamad bin Muhammad bin Hamad Al Sharqi succeeded his father, Shaikh Muhammad bin Hamad, as ruler of Fujayrah upon the latter’s death.
1975 Suppression of the Dhofari rebellion in neighboring Oman removed a significant danger from the UAE’s flank.
1976 Following the Supreme Council’s reelection of Zayid bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan as president for a second five-year term, Shaikh Rashid bin Maktum, ruler of Dubai, and several other rulers opposed Zayid’s call for strengthening the federal government, leading him to threaten resignation and causing the federation’s first political crisis. A compromise was reached and the UAE constitution remained in effect provisionally.
1977 The UAE National University opened in al-Ain.
1979 In March, for the first time, demonstrators came out to support Zayid and his call for strengthening federal political institutions. Rashid agreed to serve as UAE prime minister as well as vice president, but the dispute between unionists and federalists continued.
1981 In February, Shaikh Rashid bin Ahmad Al Mu’alla succeeded his father, Shaikh Ahmad bin Rashid, who had ruled since 1929, on the latter’s death.
In May, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE was formally established at a meeting of the heads of state in Abu Dhabi.
In August, Rashid suffered a debilitating stroke, after which the heir apparent, Maktum bin Rashid, and his three brothers effectively directed the affairs of Dubai, although the arrangement was not made formal until 1984.
In September, Shaikh Humayd bin Sultan Al Nu’aimi became ruler of Ajman, succeeding his father, Shaikh Rashid bin Humayd, on the latter’s death.
In December, the Supreme Council extended the provisional constitution until 1986.
1985 The UAE established diplomatic relations with the USSR in November.
1987 In June, Shaikh Abdul Aziz bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, brother of the ruler of Sharjah, Shaikh Sultan bin Muhammad, tried to seize power. A power-sharing arrangement was established but broke down, with Sultan retaining power.
1987-88 The United States and the UAE cooperated closely to counter the Iranian threat to oil tankers in the Gulf.
1990 In October, Shaikh Rashid, ruler of Dubai, died nine years after a debilitating stroke, and was succeeded by his son, Maktum.
1991 In January and February, UAE forces joined the allied coalition against Iraq in Operation Desert Storm.
In July, the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), in which the ruling family of Abu Dhabi owned a 77 percent share, collapsed as a result of fraudulent practices.
1992 In April, Iran extended the scope of its control over Abu Musa, requiring that visitors to the island have Iranian visas.
1993 In November, the government of Abu Dhabi agreed to pay $1.8 billion to creditors of the BCCI and, in December, Abu Dhabi sued bank executives for damages caused by their fraudulent banking operations.
1994 In June, 11 of 12 former BCCI executives accused of fraud were given prison sentences and ordered to pay compensation.
In July, the United States and the UAE signed a defense cooperation agreement.
In October, the UAE sent ground forces to Kuwait as an earnest of its support when Iraq moved troops toward the Kuwaiti border.
1995 In January, France signed a defense agreement with the UAE.
1996 In June, the federal constitution, provisional since its 1971 adoption, was made permanent, and Abu Dhabi City, which had served as the provisional federal capital since that year, became the permanent capital.
In November, the UAE launched a public diplomacy campaign to persuade its neighbors to normalize diplomatic and economic ties with Iraq.
1999 In November, the UAE received reiterated support from the GCC in its dispute with Iran over possession of the three islands of Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunbs.
2000 In July, the UAE and Iraq formally reestablished diplomatic relations after a 10-year break following Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in August 1990.
2001 Following the September 11 terrorist attacks on the New York World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the UAE complied with U.S. requests to freeze assets of organizations suspected of funding terrorism.
2002 In May, the UAE formally ratified a free trade agreement signed in November 2001 with Iraq.
2003 In January, the UAE and Oman ratified an agreement that established the border between the two countries.
2004 Shaikh Zayid died on November 2, and was immediately succeeded by his son, the heir apparent, Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayid, as ruler of Abu Dhabi. On the next day, Khalifa was elected as UAE president by the Supreme Council.
2005 In June, the UAE reacted angrily to the U.S. State Department’s “Trafficking in Persons Report,” which placed it among Tier III nations described as having a serious problem in such trafficking and failing to make a serious effort to counter it.
In November, UAE President Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayid announced that some members of the Federal National Council would in the near future be elected.
2006 In January, Muhammad bin Rashid became ruler of Dubai and vice president of the UAE, succeeding his brother, Shaikh Maktum, upon the latter’s death.
In December, popular elections were held for the first time in the UAE when a small number of men and women electors from all seven emirates elected half of the 40 members of the Federal National Council.