she called UAEToday, Sunday, the armies of allied countries to work together to build a “shield” that protects once morest the danger of drones, following they were attacked by Ansar Allah group (Houthis) Yemen with missiles and booby-trapped drones.
And opened in Abu Dhabi, on Sunday, a conference specializing in “unmanned systemsIn the presence of representatives of the armies of Arab and Western countries, including the United States, France and Britain, to discuss the development of these regimes and how to confront their dangers.
“Today, more than ever, we understand the importance of protecting our nation by ensuring that these technologies are tools that we can use, but cannot be used once morest us,” Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence Omar Sultan Al Olama told military leaders and experts.
“These systems are much cheaper and more accessible than ever before. This accessibility allows the systems to fall into the hands of the people we don’t want to fall into, the terrorist groups,” he added.
“This challenge requires us to come together and work together to ensure that we can build a shield that protects once morest the danger of these systems being used,” the official added.
The UAE has been participating in the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen in support of the government once morest the Iran-aligned Houthis since 2015. In 2019, it withdrew its forces from the poor country that has been mired in armed conflict since 2014, but it remains an influential player in it.
And last month, the UAE was subjected to three attacks with ballistic missiles and drones launched by the Houthis, following they lost areas in Yemen at the hands of Yemeni forces loyal to the government trained by the UAE. The Emirati defenses succeeded in bringing down most of them, following the first attack resulted in three deaths in Abu Dhabi.
The group, “The Promise of Righteousness Brigades”, which is not widely known, also claimed responsibility for the attempt to target the UAE with drones in the beginning of February.
The Gulf state has used Patriot batteries to counter missiles and aircraft, as well as the US THAAD system capable of intercepting ballistic missiles at high altitudes, the first time that the system has been used in a combat operation, according to the US military.
In the wake of the attacks, the United States decided to send a destroyer and fighter planes to the UAE to help its ally confront the attacks. France also announced the strengthening of its defense cooperation with the Gulf state.
“We must unite to prevent the use of drones to threaten the security of civilians and destroy economic institutions,” UAE Minister of State for Defense Affairs Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Bowardi said at the Abu Dhabi conference.
The conference comes at a time when the danger of drones is rising in the region. Saudi Arabia has been subjected to hundreds of attacks by the Houthis.
(France Brush)
