Divide and rule
Abu Dhabi has perfected warfare by delegation to proxy forces, which absorb the burden of conflict while shielding the UAE from reputational costs. Surrogates, such as local militia groups, mercenaries and communal influencers, can help translate the monarchy’s oil riches into hard and smart power.
MbZ and his brothers do not see the UAE as anybody's client state, and they take a zero-sum approach to engagement in the region to advance their interests
Exploiting local grievances, the UAE carefully builds up fighting forces by drawing on a colonial strategy of divide and rule. In Somalia, Abu Dhabi has actively supported the Somali breakaway province of Puntland, drawing on secessionist ambitions to establish a mercenary-led counter-piracy force that would provide the UAE with reach around the geo-strategically important Horn of Africa.
Around southern secessionist ambitions in Yemen, the Emiratis created the Southern Transitional Council – a surrogate force that continues to secure Abu Dhabi’s access to Yemeni waterways. In Libya, the UAE exploited the post-revolutionary polarisation to create a loose militia network under the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), giving the Gulf state significant control over North Africa’s strategic corridor in eastern Libya.
In addition, the UAE has pushed the boundaries on how mercenaries can be deployed in war. In Libya, Abu Dhabi finances Russia’s Wagner Group in support of Haftar’s LNA. In Somalia, it sponsored a counter-piracy force. And in Yemen, Latin American mercenaries in Emirati uniforms comprised the backbone of its operations, while American and Israeli mercenaries on the Emirati payroll have run assassination squads in Yemen’s south.
and the title of "Professor" doesn't mean what he says is all truthful he just wrote an article in Qatari funded news website to push his Qatari donors views.
