<P> By 1966, the British government had come to the conclusion that it could no longer afford to govern what is now the United Arab Emirates . Much deliberation took place in the British parliament, with a number of MPs arguing that the Royal Navy would not be able to defend the Trucial Sheikhdoms . Denis Healey, who, at the time, was the UK Secretary of State for Defence, reported that the British Armed Forces were severely overextended, and in some respects, dangerously under - equipped to defend the Sheikhdoms . On 24 January 1968, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson announced the decision to end the treaty relationships with the seven Trucial Sheikhdoms which had been, together with Bahrain and Qatar, under British protection . The British decision to withdraw was reaffirmed in March 1971 by Prime Minister Edward Heath . </P> <P> Days after the announcement Sheikh Zayed, fearing vulnerability, tried to persuade the British to honour the protection treaties by offering to pay in full the costs of keeping the British Armed Forces in the Emirates . The British Labour government rebuffed the offer . </P> <P> After Labour MP Goronwy Roberts informed Sheikh Zayed of the news of British withdrawal, the nine Persian Gulf sheikhdoms attempted to form a federation of Arab emirates . The federation was first proposed in February 1968 when the rulers of Abu Dhabi and Dubai met in the desert location of Argoub El Sedirah and agreed on the principle of Union . They announced their intention to form a coalition, extending an invitation to other Persian Gulf states to join . Later that month, in a summit meeting attended by the rulers of Bahrain, Qatar and the Trucial Coast, the government of Qatar proposed the formation of a federation of Arab Emirates to be governed by a higher council composing of nine rulers . This proposal was accepted and a declaration of union was approved . There were, however, several disagreements between the rulers on matters such as the location of the capital, the drafting of the constitution and the distribution of ministries . </P> <P> Further political issues surfaced as a result of Bahrain attempting to impose a leading role in the nine - state union, as well as the emergence of a number of differences between the rulers of the Trucial Coast, Bahrain and Qatar, the latter two being in a long - running dispute over the Hawar Islands . While Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Rashid, had a strong connection to the Qatari ruling family, including the royal intermarriage of his daughter with the son of the Qatari emir, the relationship between Abu Dhabi and Dubai (also cemented by intermarriage, Rashid's wife was a member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family) was to endure the break - up of the talks with both Bahrain and Qatar . Overall, there were only four meetings between the nine rulers . The last such meeting, which took place in Abu Dhabi, saw Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan elected as the first president of the federation . There were stalemates on numerous issues during the meeting, including the position of vice-president, the defence of the federation, and whether a constitution was required . </P>

How the uae became what it is today