DUBAI, UAE (AP) – The Taliban-ousted president of Afghanistan is the latest fugitive leader in the UAE. Among others who found refuge here are the dishonored former king of Spain and two Thai prime ministers.
Meanwhile, in nearby Qatar, Taliban political leaders have been refugees for years.
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have much in common, despite their strong political differences. The two Arab Gulf states maintain close security relations with the United States and both have taken political fugitives and exiled leaders.
The airlines of Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai offer a wide variety of stunning high-rise towers and opulent five-star hotels. The man-made coasts offer exclusive and elegant properties in front of the sea: many options for political exiles looking for privacy and a place to park their money.
But most importantly, these cities built by vast underground oil and gas reserves provide almost guaranteed security to once-powerful, controversial characters. Iris scanning technology at the airport, countless number of security cameras and extensive surveillance help ensure protection as well as autocratic control of power.
Maybe that’s why Afghan President Ashraf Ghani emerged in Abu Dhabi after the Taliban swept Kabul on Sunday and why Taliban political leaders have resided in Qatar for years.
The UAE announced on Wednesday afternoon that it had accepted the reception of Ghani and his family, citing humanitarian reasons, even when members of his own government wounded the Afghan president for his flight from Kabul.
Over the past year, Qatar has hosted talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government and, earlier, between the Taliban and the United States, as Washington defined the terms of its withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of its 20-year war. Taliban political leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has returned to Afghanistan this week from his residence in Qatar.
The role that the UAE and Qatar have played as hosts of the desired politicians and the best figures gives them a potential leverage: political tokens that can be played or kept for a later date.
“Qatar has positioned itself as the preferred mediator with the Taliban. It was a risky bet, especially considering the perspective with the general public, but it paid off, ”said Cinzia Bianco, a Gulf researcher at the European Council on External Relations.
“Now, Qatar is well positioned to be the first point of contact for regional and international players who want to explore the possibility of interacting with the Taliban … without compromising,” he added.
The capture of Kabul by the Taliban was so rapid that at nightfall on the same day, Taliban gun-armed commanders were sitting at the Ghani counter in the presidential palace.. Meanwhile, thousands of Afghan and foreign nationals continue to fight to flee the country.
This week, a senior U.S. military commander met face-to-face with the Taliban in Doha to negotiate the safe passage of thousands of people wanting to leave Afghanistan, stressing the crucial role Qatar plays in the midst of the confusing exit from the United States.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar are also the scene of major US military operations. Qatar’s al-Udeid air base is home to about 10,000 US troops. The Americans also leave al-Dhafra air base near Abu Dhabi.
“Each country is positioned in the best possible way to pursue its interests in this crisis,” said Dina Esfandiary, senior adviser to Crisis Group.
She says that while Qatar’s commitment as a “regional mediator” seems to have paid off, it remains to be seen how it will work in the long run. For its part, the UAE intends to show its ally in the United States that it is also a reliable partner, he said.
From his new base in the UAE, Ghani issued a video statement on Wednesday, for the first time since escaping from Kabul. He noted that he was forced to leave Afghanistan “with a set of traditional clothes, a vest and sandals” he was wearing.
To live in the UAE, however, you will need much more. The cost of living in the country is as high as its towers, even if a little support is offered.
Afghanistan’s ambassador to Tajikistan on Wednesday accused Ghani of stealing $ 169 million from state coffers and said he would request his arrest through Interpol. He alleges the Russian embassy in Kabul that Ghani fled Kabul with four cars and a helicopter full of cash. He had so much money that he couldn’t adapt to everything, and he left cash on the tarmac, according to state news agency RIA Novosti, the embassy spokesman said.
The PA was unable to verify the claims independently. The Afghan government with the support of the West it presided over has been full of corruption for a long time.
Ghani joins a list of high-profile exiles who have sought refuge in the UAE in recent years. Some have resided in Abu Dhabi, others in the UAE shopping and tourist center in Dubai.
Among them are brothers and former Thai prime ministers Thaksin Shinawatra and Yingluck Shinawatra, the former expelled in a military coup amid allegations of corruption and the latter fleeing a criminal conviction.
For years before her return to Pakistan, where she was assassinated in 2007, so did former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Another former Pakistani prime minister, Pervez Musharraf, maintains his base as Dubai. He was sentenced to death at home for treason, a sentence a Pakistani high court later overturned.
Among others, there is the former Spanish king Juan Carlos, who is facing a financial investigation; Palestinian figure Mohammed Dahlan, who was banished by his party and sentenced to prison, and Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, the eldest son of the longtime Yemeni leader who was also assassinated.
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