UN Security Council Resolution 278 | ||
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Date | May 11 1970 | |
Meeting no. | 1,536 | |
Code | S/RES/278 (Document) | |
Subject | The Question of Bahrain | |
Voting summary |
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Result | Adopted | |
Security Council composition | ||
Permanent members | ||
Non-permanent members | ||
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United Nations Security Council Resolution 278, adopted unanimously on May 11, 1970, after statements from representatives of Iran and the United Kingdom, the Council endorsed the report of the Personal Representative of the Secretary-General and welcomed its conclusion, particularly the finding that "the overwhelming majority of the people of Bahrain wish to gain recognition of their identity in a full independent and sovereign State free to decide for itself its relations with other States". [1]
After World War II, Bahrain became the centre for British administration of the lower Persian Gulf. In 1968, when the British Government announced its decision to end the treaty relationships with the Persian Gulf sheikdoms, Bahrain joined with Qatar and the seven Trucial States (which now form the United Arab Emirates) under British protection in an effort to form a union of Arab emirates. By mid-1971, however, the nine sheikhdoms still had not agreed on the terms of union. Accordingly, Bahrain sought independence as a separate entity declaring independence on August 15, 1971, and becoming formally independent as the State of Bahrain on December 16, 1971. [2]
The United Arab Emirates is a country in the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula located on the southeastern coast of the Persian Gulf and the northwestern coast of the Gulf of Oman. The UAE consists of seven emirates and was founded on 2 December 1971 as a federation, after UK armed forces left the region. Six of the seven emirates declared their union on 2 December 1971. The seventh, Ras al Khaimah, joined the federation on 10 February 1972. The seven sheikdoms were formerly known as the Trucial States, in reference to the truce treaties established with the British in the 19th century.
Bahrain was a central location of the ancient Dilmun civilization. Bahrain's strategic location in the Persian Gulf has brought rule and influence from mostly the Persians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Portuguese, the Arabs, and the British.
Abu Musa (Bu Musa) (Persian: بوموسا, IPA:[æbumu'sɒ] ) is an Iranian 12.8-square-kilometre (4.9 sq mi) island in the eastern Persian Gulf, found near the entrance of Strait of Hormuz. Due to the depth of sea, oil tankers and big ships have to pass between Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunbs, making these islands some of the most strategic points in the Persian Gulf. The island is under the administration of Iran, as part of the Hormozgan province.
The Arab states of the Persian Gulf, also known as the Arab Gulf states, refers to a group of Arab states bordering the Persian Gulf. There are seven member states of the Arab League in the region: Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Yemen is bound to the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, based on history and culture.
The Persian Gulf Residency was a subdivision of the British Empire from 1822 until 1971, whereby the United Kingdom maintained varying degrees of political and economic control over several states in the Persian Gulf, including what is today known as the United Arab Emirates and at various times southern portions of Iran, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar.
The seizure of Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by the Imperial Iranian Navy took place on 30 November 1971, shortly after the withdrawal of British forces from the islands of Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs, all located in the Strait of Hormuz between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. The Imperial State of Iran had claimed sovereignty over both sets of islands, while the Emirate of Ras al-Khaimah claimed the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and the Emirate of Sharjah claimed Abu Musa.
The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates provides a legal and political framework for the operation of the United Arab Emirates as a federation of seven emirates. The Constitution came into effect on 2 December 1971 and was permanently accepted in July 1996. Authored by Adi Bitar, a forming judge and legal advisor, the Constitution is written in 10 parts and has 152 Articles. The United Arab Emirates celebrates the formation of the Union as National Day on 2 December.
This article deals with territorial disputes between states of in and around the Persian Gulf in Southwestern Asia. These states include Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Oman.
The Trucial States, also known as the Trucial Coast, the Trucial Sheikhdoms, Trucial Arabia or Trucial Oman, was a group of tribal confederations to the south of the Persian Gulf whose leaders had signed protective treaties, or truces, with the United Kingdom between 1820 and 1892.
The 1964 Arab League summit in Alexandria was held on 11 September 1964 in Montaza Palace, Alexandria as the second Arab League Summit. The focus of the conference was to implement the plans discussed at the first Arab League summit held in January of that year. The summit was notable for being a key step in the buildup to the Six-Day War in 1967 and separately for "approving the establishment of the Palestine Liberation Organization."
Relations exist between the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Relations between the two countries are close and friendly, with the U.A.E. having an embassy in Manama while Bahrain maintains its embassy in Abu Dhabi. Both states are geographically a part of the Persian Gulf and lie in close proximity to one another; both are also members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
The military history of the United Arab Emirates describes the military history of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces. Prior to the union of the emirates, different tribal confederations formed the de facto military force which was dominant in the area now known as the United Arab Emirates. The Bani Yas and Al Qawasim were the most significant of those tribal confederations. The official formation of the military began with the formation of the Truical Oman Levies by the British Empire on 11 May 1951 as the area was under a British protectorate.
An independence survey was held in the Persian Gulf island nation of Bahrain during 1970. The survey, took the form of a United Nations poll on whether islanders preferred independence or Iranian control. The report of the Personal Representative of the Secretary-General on the consultation stated that "the overwhelming majority of the people of Bahrain wish to gain recognition of their identity in a full independent and sovereign State free to decide for itself its relations with other States".
The Federal Supreme Council, also known as the Supreme Council of Rulers, is the highest constitutional authority in the United Arab Emirates, being the highest legislative and executive body. It replaced the earlier Trucial States Council upon the formation of the United Arab Emirates in 1971 and establishes general policies and sanctions federal legislation. It is the highest federal authority in terms of hierarchy in the five federal authorities prescribed in the Constitution followed by the president and the vice president, federal cabinet, Federal National Council and the federal judiciary. It is made up of the rulers of each of the Emirates of the United Arab Emirates.
The timeline of the Gulf War details the dates of the major events of the 1990–1991 war. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait on 2 August 1990 and ended with the Liberation of Kuwait by Coalition forces. Iraq subsequently agreed to the United Nations' demands on 28 February 1991. The ground war officially concluded with the signing of the armistice on 11 April 1991. However, the official end to Operation Desert Storm did not occur until sometime between 1996 - 1998. Major events in the aftermath include anti-Saddam Hussein uprisings in Iraq, massacres against the Kurds by the regime, Iraq formally recognizing the sovereignty of Kuwait in 1994, and eventually ending its cooperation with the United Nations Special Commission in 1998.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi was an Emirati royal, politician and a founder of the United Arab Emirates who served as the ruler of Fujairah from 1938–1974. In 1952 he was to see his father's long-held dream of independence for Fujairah recognised by the British, the last Trucial State to be so recognised, as well as shortly afterwards to help take the UAE to independence as a nation, in 1971. Due to his skills in diplomacy and politics he was called the wolf of the Gulf.
The Federation of Arab Emirates (FAE) (Arabic: اتحاد الامارات العربية), also sometimes Union of Arab Emirates, was a proposed sovereign federal union of nine sheikhdoms of Britain's Persian Gulf Residency, comprising Bahrain, Qatar and the rest of seven emirates of the Trucial States, namely Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Umm Al Quwain, Ajman, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. The union existed during much of the unification of the United Arab Emirates and came into being as a semblance of a transitional government in February 1968 following a meeting between the leaders of these emirates in less than two months after the British decision of withdrawal was announced. However, several disagreements between the leaders due to political and economic reasons led to the dissolution of the union when Bahrain and Qatar announced their respective independence by August and September 1971 whereas the rest of the Trucial States (with the temporary exception of Ras Al Khaimah) went on to form the United Arab Emirates in December 1971.
Chattel slavery existed in the Trucial States (1892–1971), which later formed the United Arab Emirates. The Trucial States consisted of the Sheikdoms Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Fujairah, and Ras Al Khaimah. The region was mainly supplied with enslaved people from the Indian Ocean slave trade, but humans were also trafficked to the area from Hejaz, Oman and Persia. Slaves were used in the famous pearl fish industry and later in the oil industry, as well as sex slaves and domestic servants. Many members of the Afro-Arabian minority are descendants of the former slaves.
The unification of the United Arab Emirates was a political and diplomatic campaign essentially led by the ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in the British protectorates of the Persian Gulf Residency primarily from February 1968 to December 1971 where he successfully convinced the rulers of the emirates of Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain to form an independent sovereign federal union with Abu Dhabi, initially known as the Federation of Arab Emirates and later as the United Arab Emirates on the eve of Britain's withdrawal and anticipated dissolution of the Persian Gulf Residency. The period may also include the two months between the federation's proclamation in December 1971 and up until the accession of Ras Al Khaimah in February 1972 which temporarily resisted the union upon its inception due to several geopolitical and economic reasons.