The Emirates joins Svalbard Treaty

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become a party to the Svalbard Treaty, the Barents Observer reports. It is the 49th signatory of the 1920 agreement. The latest accessions before it were Turkey in 2024, Serbia in 2022 and North Korea in 2016, while Yugoslavia had already acceded back in 1925.

Abdulla Balalaa, the UAE Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs, was cited by the Emirates News Agency (WAM). He said accession creates fresh routes to cooperation in science and environmental work, and lets Emirati scientists take part directly in global research at stations such as Ny-Ålesund, which he called among the world's most northerly permanent civilian research bases. He added that the country will expand its polar programmes and build international partnerships tied to climate resilience and future generations.

Mariam Almheiri, Chair of the Emirates Polar Programme, said the step begins a new phase in the UAE's involvement in Arctic science. She said it lets the country contribute to global research, deepens scientific cooperation and allows participation in joint Arctic expeditions with leading nations. The UAE joined the Antarctic Treaty in December 2024, and its Foreign Ministry said then that this showed a growing role in global environmental diplomacy.

The UAE sits on the Arabian Peninsula's eastern edge, and its capital is Abu Dhabi. It is the second Gulf state to join the Svalbard Treaty. Saudi Arabia, then the Kingdom of Hejaz, signed in 1925. The treaty gave Norway sovereignty over the archipelago in 1920, made Svalbard an economic free zone and bars its use for war-related purposes. When it took effect in 1925, the archipelago was renamed Svalbard.

Russia is the only country besides Norway with economic activity on Svalbard. Trust Arktikugol (Russia's state-owned company on Svalbard) runs Barentsburg, a coal-mining town with around 250 inhabitants. Moscow has said it plans an international science hub in Pyramiden, an abandoned Soviet-period town where the last coal was mined over two decades back. Arktikugol has been tasked with finding partner nations, especially among the BRICS+ countries. The UAE became a BRICS+ member in 2024, when Russia chaired the bloc.