Joe Odell is Press Officer at the International Campaign for Freedom in the UAE. He has an MA in Middle Eastern Politics and regularly writes and speaks on the Middle East, especially the Gulf region.
Comment: The recent soft power push has far more to do with strategic military interests, weapons contracts and the steady flow of oil, than cultural collaboration, writes Joe Odell.
Comment: When Khaled got his dream job in UAE, he wasn't expecting torture and arbitrary detention. UAE must be held to account over its human rights abuses, writes Joe Odell.
Comment: Post-Brexit, the UK is looking to increase its trading relationship with the UAE, and has failed to condemn recent escalating repression in the Gulf state, writes Joe Odell.