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Big brother returns

Gregg Carlstrom: Middle East correspondent, The Economist, BEIRUT

Dubai may need help from Abu Dhabi again

A YEAR AGO the only real dividing line between the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi
was the speed limit: drivers heading south could escape Dubai’s traffic and open it up to
140kph on Abu Dhabi’s wide, empty highways. But since the pandemic began, they
instead come to a stop: the once-invisible line has become a hard border. Anyone
crossing into Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), must now queue
for a covid-19 test.

The checkpoints are one sign of a sometimes awkward relationship. Dubai is the flashy
one of the pair, with its man-made islands and hedonistic hotels. Abu Dhabi is the seat of
political power and the country’s oil, but happily keeps a lower profile. True to form,
Dubai reopened its economy (and its airport) faster than its neighbour wanted—hence
the border.

In 2009, when the financial crisis battered Dubai’s debt-laden economy, Abu Dhabi
stepped in with a $10bn bail-out. Facing a protracted slump from covid-19, Dubai may
need help again. It will not be an overt bail-out this time. Instead, Abu Dhabi—acting