In 2014, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) embarked on a bold experiment: It began drafting young men into the military. But as a CSIS Middle East Program research team discovered, the UAE’s move to press young men into military service is not merely a response to security challenges. It is a stunningly ambitious experiment to use the military to shape a new kind of citizen for the future of the UAE. What is the UAE trying to gain? What are the intended and unintended consequences likely to be? And why should we care sitting in Washington, D.C.? In this episode, Jon Alterman and Margo Balboni discuss the questions driving their exploration of the UAE draft and preview expert conversations bringing diverse insights into these themes in coming episodes.

Introducing Citizens in Training: The Unlikely Story of the UAE’s National Military Service Program

Through a series of expert interviews, this podcast mini-series explores some of the most pressing questions raised by the CSIS Middle East Program report, “Citizens in Training: Conscription and Nation-building in the United Arab Emirates.”
Hear from leading experts on the Gulf, the UAE, and modern militaries in general what the UAE’s bold experiment in military conscription as a nationbuilding tool reveals about the leadership’s diagnosis of its key challenges at a pivotal moment in its national trajectory, the rise of new nationalism in the Gulf and GCC states’ efforts to prepare for a post-oil future, and the implications of conscription for both militaries and societies in a 21st century world. Jon Alterman and Margo Balboni of the Middle East Program host. Produced by Emily Grunewald and Yumi Araki.
For listeners who want a deeper dive into the UAE’s conscription program, the full “Citizens in Training” report with a two-page executive summary is available here.

Non-Profit

Through a series of expert interviews, this podcast mini-series explores some of the most pressing questions raised by the CSIS Middle East Program report, “Citizens in Training: Conscription and Nation-building in the United Arab Emirates.” Hear from leading experts on the Gulf, the UAE, and modern militaries in general what the UAE’s bold experiment in military conscription as a nationbuilding tool reveals about the leadership’s diagnosis of its key challenges at a pivotal moment in its national trajectory, the rise of new nationalism in the Gulf and GCC states’ efforts to prepare for a post-oil future, and the implications of conscription for both militaries and societies in a 21st century world. Jon Alterman and Margo Balboni of the Middle East Program host. Produced by Emily Grunewald and Yumi Araki. For listeners who want a deeper dive into the UAE’s conscription program, the full “Citizens in Training” report with a two-page executive summary is available here.

Share Introducing Citizens in Training: The Unlikely Story of the UAE’s National Military Service Program

Sign up to save your podcasts

Introducing Citizens in Training: The Unlikely Story of the UAE’s National Military Service Program

Introducing Citizens in Training: The Unlikely Story of the UAE’s National Military Service Program

More shows like Citizens in Training

The Truth of the Matter

Russian Roulette

ChinaPower

Power Map

The Trade Guys

The Impossible State

Into Africa

The Asia Chessboard

Babel: Translating the Middle East

Mexico Matters