U.A.E. Flexes Muscle Reaching Beyond Finance-Hub Role
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When Mariam Al Mansouri, a female fighter pilot from the United Arab Emirates, made headlines in September for leading airstrikes against Islamic State, she put a public face to her country’s ambitions.
Best known for its financial allure, symbolized by Dubai’s skyscrapers, the U.A.E. is starting to flex its military and diplomatic muscles too. In the past year it has helped consolidate an army-installed government in Egypt and is said to have sent planes to bomb Islamists in Libya, as well as joining the U.S. campaign against militants in Syria.