From/ Rami Sami..

ABU DHABI, September 26 / WAM / International hotels are set to benefit from the UAE’s booming growth and tourism recovery. The hotel occupancy rate in the country is one of the highest in the world.

In a statement to Emirates News Agency WAM on the sidelines of the Future Hospitality Summit 2023 in the capital Abu Dhabi, international hotel executives said the UAE has been a success thanks to the vision of smart leadership. Developing its tourism policy and infrastructure in line with best international practices, it becomes a sustainable destination for tourists from all over the world. Thanks to its top-class hotel facilities and various tourist and heritage attractions, its security and stability, its strategic location and its variety of activities, through which all It maintains its regional and global leadership as a top tourist destination that caters to all tastes.

The UAE government has launched national initiatives and strategies to support the development of the tourism sector, as it is a key contributor to the diversification of the national economy and a key contributor to the UAE’s competitiveness on the global tourism map. , increasing investments in several tourism sectors, creating new tourism and entertainment projects in various emirates, the state and the inauguration of new airports, which confirm the effectiveness of the sustainable tourism policies adopted by the emirates.

Officials pointed to the UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, which consolidates the country’s position as one of the world’s top tourist destinations, improves its competitiveness by attracting 100 billion UAE dirhams in additional tourism investments and doubles the number of tourists. 40 million, with an expected GDP of 450 billion dirhams. Total by 2031.

According to official data, the tourism sector in the country achieved strong results last year, especially hotel companies that received 25 million guests in 2022, a 30% increase over 2021 and increased the number of tourist nights to 91 million nights in 2022. 18% growth rate in 2021, and hotel company revenue will reach 38 billion dirhams in 2022, an increase of 35% compared to 2021, with an additional 1,198 hotel companies and hotel occupancy rate will reach 71%.

Makhram Al-Zeer, Rotana Hotel Management’s vice president of development, said the company is working to expand its presence in the UAE specifically and globally as part of its plans to expand into new global markets, including the United. The Kingdom, in addition to entering the market by opening two new hotels, is Georgian, which will open a new hotel in 2026.

In the past two years, Rotana has opened 3 hotels in the Emirates and is looking forward to opening a new hotel next year at Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, which will include 217 hotel apartments. Tourism growth and high hotel occupancy rates, which currently has 36 hotels in the UAE including 10,159 rooms, indicate that “Rotana” is expanding its portfolio of projects and the scope of its operations to 30 new ones. Over the next three years, approximately 5,800 additional rooms will be added to Rotana’s portfolio of hotels worldwide.

Makram indicated that he expects to open a new hotel in Al-Khobar in Saudi Arabia and a hotel in Manama in the Kingdom of Bahrain in the next year. A number of new projects are planned for 2024, including the opening of a new hotel in Dakar, Senegal, by 2026 and an entry into the Algerian market, while Rotana is preparing to open several new hotels in its final quarter. Year in Doha, Qatar and Istanbul, Turkey.

For his part, Siegfried Nerhus, Deutsche Hospitality’s Vice President for the Middle East, said the UAE has astute leadership, encouraging the tourism and hotel industry to grow and prosper, while providing a fertile environment for expansion and spread across the country’s emirates. Pointing to the UAE, it has become a global hub for the tourism, hospitality and entertainment industry. It has established itself as a preferred destination for business, tourism and leisure, contributing significantly to international tourist arrivals. Enjoy dynamic offers and unique attractions.

Nerhus added that the UAE embraces special tourism events such as the Future Hospitality Summit, which provide a great opportunity to understand emerging regional trends and guest preferences, interact with stakeholders and exchange ideas. Strategies to support the growth of the sector, and more investments to support growth and development.

He pointed to Deutsche Hospitality’s commitment to expanding and enriching its hotel portfolio in the country, as the possibility of expanding our German hospitality brand with international H Group hotels and expanding into the Middle East region is currently being considered. On the United Arab Emirates.

For his part, Eli Melki, vice president of development for the Middle East, Greece, Cyprus and Pakistan at Radisson Hotel Group, said the group recently saw more expansion in the UAE with the opening of a hotel in Palm Jumeirah. In Dubai, the UAE in particular remains a key market for the group while the group is eyeing more expansion opportunities in the country.

Melki pointed out the importance of national policies and initiatives taken by the UAE to support the development of the tourism sector, making it an ideal destination for tourists from all over the world, reflecting the country’s commitment to sustainable tourism and its global leadership. In this sector, the UAE has made huge investments in tourism and hotel projects.

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok protested the United Nations invitation of army chief Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to participate in UN General Assembly meetings, saying it was sending very dangerous signals. Military coups on the African continent.

Hamdok, along with the sovereign and members of the Council of Ministers, who were overthrown by the military in the October 25, 2021 coup, sent a letter to United Nations Secretary-General Anthony Guterres, in which they said, “This call contradicts international positions rejecting the coup that halted the democratic transition process in Sudan”.

In addition to Hamdok, the letter received by Ashark al-Awsad was signed by three members of the Sovereignty Council: Muhammad al-Faqi Sulaiman, al-Tahar Hajar and Muhammad Hassan al-Taishi. Key ministers in Hamdok’s government headed by Council Affairs Minister Khalid Umar Yusuf also signed.

Constitutional collapse

A military element led by Lt. Gen. al-Burhan led a military coup against the interim civilian government, leading to a complete constitutional collapse in the country, Hamdok’s interim civilian government said in a letter to the United Nations. of a de facto government, which later collapsed upon the outbreak of war.On April 15, the direct result of a coup against the civilian government carried out by both sides of the current war, the military and the Quick Support. forces.

The African Union, the UN, rejected the military coup that undermined Hamdok’s civilian government. The letter also referred to the positions of the Security Council and the European Union, and halted the process of democratic transition in Sudan. Condemning the coup d’état and demanding the return of power to the people.

Contradictory positions

The letter promises to invite the military commander to attend United Nations General Assembly meetings as Sudan’s representative, which is contrary to declared international positions and helps prolong the ongoing war in Sudan. The recent rise in military coups on the African continent.

On October 25, the Chairman of the Sovereignty Council, the Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Army, announced the dissolution of the Sovereignty Council and the Council of Ministers, the suspension of certain provisions of the constitutional document governing the interim period, and the arrest of the Prime Minister. Minister and members of the Sovereign Council and Ministers of the Executive.

In light of these actions by the Sudanese military, the African Union suspended Sudan’s membership, describing it as an unconstitutional power grab, and the United States and the World Bank froze aid to Sudan, making it conditional on its reinstatement. Power to civil forces.

The MIG shot down the plane

On the ground, on Monday, a MIG military aircraft belonging to the Sudanese army was shot down by Rapid Support Forces, as fighting intensified in several parts of the capital city of Khartoum. Residents of neighborhoods adjacent to the military headquarters in central Khartoum reported violent clashes between the two sides and exchanges of artillery and heavy weapons around the military’s key military headquarters. For the tenth day in a row, the Rapid Support Forces attack with the aim of controlling the military command.

According to witnesses who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat, the army bombarded the offensive forces with drones, leading to thick columns of black smoke in the targeted area. South of Khartoum.

Heavy artillery fire was heard in Al-Zarif, West, Burri, Imdad Nasser and the capital Khartoum all east of the Nile.

In a statement on the “X” site (formerly Twitter), the Rapid Support Forces announced the downing of the second Army MIG fighter jet in two days.

The aircraft “dropped bombs on innocent civilians and continued to destroy public facilities and markets,” the Rapid Support Forces said. Remnants and elements of the defunct Burhan-led National Congress regime adopted a scorched-earth policy, deliberately bombing settlements, markets and key facilities in the three cities of the capital and some states in Darfur and Kordofan. Thousands of innocent civilians were injured.

These facilities include shipbuilding, airstrip repair and military bases in the Philippines, ready to defend the Philippines and support the island of Taiwan, located north of the Philippines, in case of any Chinese invasion of the island.

Philippine request

The news came in a report by the Hong Kong newspaper “South China Morning Post” published on Monday.

• The Philippines has asked the US to help build a ship and repair an airstrip at the Camilo Osias naval base in northern Cagayan province, which is accessible to Washington under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) signed between the two countries in 2014.
• These bases are very close to southern Taiwan and, if strengthened and developed, could be focal points if a conflict with China erupts.
• There are plans to add a fuel storage facility and command center at Lal Lo Airport, Cagayan.
• US Indo-Pacific Command Commander Adm. John Aquilino and Armed Forces of the Philippines Commander Romeo Browner Jr. inspected the two sites this month to discuss increasing the number of sites Americans can access under the deal.

Mutual Defense Agreement

The EDCA agreement is a joint defense agreement that allows the US military to rotate forces for long periods of time in 5 locations in the country, located across from China, separated only by the waters of the South China Sea, and allowing Washington to build and operate facilities. For American and Philippine forces.

In February, the Philippines extended an agreement to give the Americans access to four other military bases, including Camilo Osias Naval Base and Lal Lu Airport, north of the country toward southern Taiwan.

The Philippines and the United States have agreed that the Camilo Osias base and Lal Lu airport could play an important role in the event of an armed conflict between China and Taiwan. Forces operating there would have immediate access to defend Taiwan’s southern flank and prevent Chinese incursions into the Philippine Sea through the Bashi Channel.

The Philippines has been under military pressure from China, including incidents in recent months in which Chinese ships blocked Philippine Coast Guard vessels from reaching disputed islands.

Time indicators

Since August 2022, former Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan has seen a serious crisis between Beijing and Washington, which China accuses of supporting Washington in its “separatist efforts”. It is bracing for the possibility of a US-China conflict in the region, particularly if Beijing invades Taiwan.

In light of this situation, political analyst Jasser Matar explains to Sky News Arabia the implications of recent US action in the Philippines, which is close to Taiwan and the Chinese mainland:

• The Philippines has bases closest to Taiwan, which is the gateway to the south of the island.
• The US wants to build up a military base at every point close to Taiwan. Supporting Ukraine in the event of a Chinese invasion, as it did in neighboring Poland.
• Also, the intensity of the US presence and the development of military infrastructure in the Philippines contribute to the defense of Manila, which could be vulnerable to military action if a conflict breaks out over Taiwan.
• This creates a crisis for China; The United States prepared Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines to defend Taiwan.
• Washington, for its part, is betting that increasing the armaments of these allies and intensifying its presence on their lands will deter China from attacking Taiwan. So don’t open more than one front.
• However, if a conflict breaks out in the South China Sea, it will be multilateral, not just between two countries.

The US Defense Secretary, who visited Manila last February, reaffirmed his country’s commitment to the Philippines in the event of any attacks, as per the Mutual Defense Treaty.

“We have indicated that the mutual defense agreement applies to armed attacks on our armed forces, public vessels or aircraft anywhere in the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea,” he said at a news conference in Austin. With his Filipino, Carlito Galvez.