![Abu Dhabi’s then-Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan greets Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.](https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/uae-sudan-ethiopia-east-africa-01232024-1.jpg?w=519&h=259&crop=1)
East Africa has long been a region of great geopolitical importance and, as a result, the object of fierce competition. Now, recent developments, including Sudan’s brutal civil war and Ethiopia’s port access deal with Somaliland, have shone a spotlight on the United Arab Emirates’ influential role in regional affairs.