United Arab Emirates

The **United Arab Emirates** (**UAE; in Arabic: الإمارات العربية المتحدة**) is a country in Western Asia. It borders Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. The capital is Abu Dhabi, and the largest city is Dubai. The Burj Khalifa, Earth's tallest artificial structure, is in Dubai. Approximately 600.83 square kilometers is the area of the United Arab Emirates, till December 31, 2017, the UAE counted a population of 9,304,277,  according to the reports of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority. 

The main natural resources in The United Arab Emirates are oil and gas. The oil reserves of the UAE are approximately 8.2% of the global oil reserves according to OPEC. Economic growth has been more steady than in most countries in the Middle East.

The country is made of seven states, or emirates. Each emirate is an absolute monarchy. The UAE has a federal constitution by which the Emirates share power. They organized the Trucial States, an informal protectorate.

In 1968 the British announced that they were leaving their colonies in the Middle East and on 2nd December 1971, the United Arab Emirates was created. Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became the president of the state and Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the former ruler of Dubai, became the vice president.

## Culture 
The UAE is a modern state which sticks to its heritage because the citizens are the minority. The officials in UAE support establishing the necessary balance between modernization and tradition and give an illustration of the cultural identity. The United Arab Emirates is colorful and rich in Folklore. The camel and the date palm have nomadic and agricultural bases in its society that are traceable to thousands of years before the spread of Arabs and Muslims. The UAE is also Influenced by other ancient civilizations like Mesopotamia and Greece however the colonial powers which controlled almost everything left very little affect on the folklore of this country. The aggressive behavior of the Portuguese left no space for social interaction and culture exchange

## Government and politics 
The United Arab Emirates is based on a federal-state system that is subject to the provisions of the UAE constitution with full sovereignty. The Federation has its capital, logo, flag, and national anthem. Several federal institutions shape the political system of the United Arab Emirates. The Federal Supreme Council (in Arabic: المجلس الأعلى للاتحاد) represents the highest authority in the country and the rulers of the seven emirates are members of it. Its mission is to take care of the common interests of the Emirates, the ratification of federal laws, the election of the president and his deputy and other tasks. It became first Arab country to reach Mars.

## Development of the UAE 
The most important elements behind the growth and development since the founding of the UAE are oil and gas. The first export of oil took place in the year 1962, the former president Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan wanted to use these resources in building infrastructure for starting economic and civilization development. The development of the UAE is going so fast, especially in the last 20 years, so Dubai did realize huge projects like Palm Jumeirah, The World (archipelago), and Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.

The state of UAE is focusing recently on building the basics for future development, by supporting projects and initiatives that promote qualitative innovation investments, research, technological- and industrial development. The government is preparing an integrated strategy that will enable them to completely dispense with oil as one important compartment of the economy because currently more than 30% of the UAE's GDP is based on oil. One percent of the people are agnostic. There are other sources that say that the percentage of Christians is much higher, especially among foreigners. One report gives an estimate of almost thirteen percent. Most of the remaining fifteen percent are Shia. Most Shia Muslims live in the Emirates of Dubai and Sharjah. There are no official statistics for the breakdown between Sunni and Shia Muslims among noncitizen residents. Media estimates suggest less than twenty percent of the noncitizen Muslim population are Shia.  The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is the largest mosque in the country and a major tourist attraction. Ibadi is common among Omanis in the UAE, while Sufi influences exist as well.

Most of the Christans are Roman Catholics. 

## References
## Other websites 
* United Arab Emirates profile