Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (Arabic: محمد بن زايد آل نهيان, romanized: Muḥammad bin Zāyid Āl Nahyān; born 11 March 1961), popularly known by his initials as MBZ or MbZ, is an Emirati royal and politician who currently serves as the third president of the United Arab Emirates and the ruler of Abu Dhabi.

MBZ completed his education in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, and graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in April 1979. He later joined the UAE Military, and held various posts before becoming a pilot in the UAE Air Force; he was promoted to general in 2005.

Sheikh Mohamed is the third son of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who was the first president of the UAE and the 16th ruler of Abu Dhabi. MBZ became the crown prince of Abu Dhabi in 2004, following the death of his father and his brother, Sheikh Khalifa becoming the president of the UAE and the ruler of Abu Dhabi. In 2014, Sheikh Khalifa suffered a stroke; then MBZ became the de facto ruler of Abu Dhabi and president of the UAE. MBZ officially became president of the UAE and ruler of Abu Dhabi following the death of his brother on 13 May 2022. On 29 March 2023, MBZ appointed his son Sheikh Khalid as crown prince of Abu Dhabi.

Academics have characterized the UAE under MBZ as an authoritarian or authoritarian capitalist country. Since becoming de facto president, the UAE went through a period of economic liberalization, including the introduction of VAT, corporate taxes and bankruptcy laws; the elimination of gas subsidies, the removal of curbs of foreign ownership of businesses and the decriminalization of bounced cheques. The UAE also went through some social liberalization, including the de jure removal of corporal punishment and Sharia law outside of blood money claims and personal status matters of Muslims; the decriminalization of co-habitation, extra-marital relationships and alcohol consumption by Muslims; a legal process of children born outside of wedlock; and civil courts for personal status matters of non-Muslims.

MBZ is known to oppose Islamism, the Muslim Brotherhood, Iran and Iranian-backed groups. Since becoming de facto president, the UAE participated in the war against ISIS and was officially part of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen until the UAE withdrew their troops in 2019. The UAE disagreed with Saudi Arabia's approach in the war for its support of Al-Islah, a party the UAE considers close to the Muslim Brotherhood; but maintains its support of the Southern Transitional Council. MBZ fell out with the Obama administration on the Iran nuclear deal and supported the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. The UAE was a party in the 2017 - 2021 Qatar diplomatic crisis, based on claims that Qatar supports the Muslim Brotherhood. MBZ maintained a close relationship with former US President Donald Trump, with reports that MBZ convinced Trump to take a hard-stance on Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood. In September 2020, the UAE signed the Abraham Accords, an agreement to normalize diplomatic relationship with Israel brokered by Trump. The UAE has more recently been involved in an economic rivalry with Saudi Arabia, and opposed Saudi efforts for OPEC+ production cuts.

In 2019, The New York Times named him as the most powerful Arab ruler, and was named as one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2019 by Time magazine. In 2023, the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre ranked MBZ as the eighth-most influential Muslim.