Defence cooperation between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Southeast Asia has expanded steadily over the past decade, reflecting broader diplomatic, economic, and strategic engagement. As the UAE strengthens its orientation towards the Indo-Pacific region and ASEAN states diversify their external partnerships amid intensifying great-power competition, defence collaboration has become an increasingly visible component of interregional relations. While not institutionalized at the alliance level, cooperation encompasses defence industry partnerships, security engagement, and strategic dialogue mechanisms.
Strategic and Diplomatic Foundations
A major step in formalizing UAE–Southeast Asia relations occurred when the UAE became a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN in 2022. This status provides a structured platform for political consultation and cooperation across economic, cultural, and potentially security domains. Continued diplomatic engagements, including UAE-hosted ASEAN committee meetings, demonstrates the institutionalisation of ties and creates opportunities for expanding security dialogue.
For Southeast Asian states, engagement with the UAE aligns with ASEAN’s long-standing strategy of diversification and hedging. As the region navigates intensifying rivalry between the United States and China, ASEAN members seek broader partnerships that reinforce strategic autonomy. The UAE’s pragmatic and multi-aligned foreign policy make it an attractive partner that does not impose ideological or bloc-based conditions.
Defence Industry Cooperation
The most significant driver of UAE–Southeast Asia defence cooperation lies in defence industrial partnerships. Over the past decade, the UAE has invested heavily in domestic defence manufacturing, particularly through EDGE Group. This strategy aligns with Abu Dhabi’s goal of diversifying its economy while becoming a competitive global defence exporter.
A landmark example is the USD 7 billion cooperation agreement between EDGE Group and Indonesia’s Republikorp to develop localized defence capabilities and industrial production. The agreement, signed during the Dubai Airshow in 2025, includes technology transfer, joint production initiatives, and modernisation efforts for the Indonesian Armed Forces, reflecting Indonesia’s ambition to strengthen its domestic defence industry while diversifying procurement sources. This partnership illustrates how defence cooperation extends beyond simple arms sales to encompass industrial collaboration and capacity building.
Similarly, EDGE Group has established a cooperation framework with Vietnam’s Viettel to explore collaboration in strategic defence technologies. This agreement signals potential cooperation in advanced systems and aligns with Vietnam’s modernisation priorities, particularly in high-technology and dual-use sectors.
Another notable initiative is the collaboration between EDGE Group and Singapore’s ST Engineering to develop defence solutions tailored to Southeast Asian and Gulf markets. Singapore’s advanced technological ecosystem and defence innovation capabilities complement the UAE’s manufacturing ambitions, creating mutually beneficial industrial linkages covering the areas of small calibre ammunition, unmanned technologies, future soldier systems, and training & simulation.
Singapore-UAE defence cooperation has been entrenched further with ST Engineering working with Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) in 2026 to design and supply systems for a fleet of eight missile gunboats for the Kuwait Naval Force. The gunboats are based on Singapore’s Fearless-class patrol vessel design and is worth more than USD$400 million.
The UAE’s expanding defence export footprint, now reaching over 100 countries, with a significant proportion of EDGE sales directed overseas, demonstrates the Emirates’ growing competitiveness in global arms markets. Southeast Asia, with its ongoing modernization programs and need for cost-effective solutions, represents a promising market for UAE systems, particularly in unmanned systems, smart munitions, and electronic warfare capabilities.
Security Engagements
Maritime security forms a natural area of convergence between the UAE and Southeast Asian states. Both regions are heavily dependent on secure sea lanes for trade and energy flows. Southeast Asia encompasses critical maritime chokepoints such as the Strait of Malacca, while the UAE’s economy is deeply linked to maritime commerce through its ports and logistics infrastructure.
Southeast Asian states face persistent maritime challenges, including piracy, illegal fishing, smuggling, and contested territorial claims in the South China Sea. Affordable surveillance systems and unmanned surface vessels, areas where UAE firms are increasingly competitive, are particularly relevant to archipelagic states such as Indonesia and the Philippines.
Defence exhibitions and high-level exchanges have facilitated defence dialogue and engagements between the two parties. In recent years, UAE defence firms have participated in Defence & Security Exhibitions in Thailand and the Malaysian LIMA Defence Exhibition. These interactions, while incremental, contribute to long-term confidence-building and interoperability prospects.
Counterterrorism and Security Dialogue
Counterterrorism represents another important area of shared interest. Several Southeast Asian states, including Indonesia and the Philippines, have confronted extremist networks and transnational militancy. The UAE has positioned itself as an active participant in international counterterrorism efforts and has developed sophisticated frameworks for countering extremist financing.
While detailed intelligence-sharing arrangements are not always public, defence and security dialogues and high-level exchanges provide mechanisms for sharing best practices and exploring cooperation in financial monitoring and deradicalization initiatives. The UAE Ministry of Interior’s participation in the 2025 ASEANAPOL Conference in Bangkok reflects its effort to reinforcing regional security collaboration with ASEAN police forces. In 2026, the UAE hosted a landmark meeting between GCC and ASEANAPOL members along with other partners in Abu Dhabi. This meeting demonstrates the UAE’s commitment to strengthen policing and security cooperation with ASEAN.
Multilateral and Strategic Context
UAE–Southeast Asia defence cooperation should also be viewed within a broader strategic context. ASEAN’s emphasis on centrality and balanced engagement encourages external partners to adopt non-confrontational and inclusive approaches. The UAE’s diversified foreign policy, maintaining relations with Western powers, China, and other Asian states, resonates with ASEAN’s hedging strategy.
Nevertheless, limitations remain. Geographic distance constrains the scale of joint exercises compared to intra-regional partnerships. Furthermore, Southeast Asia’s defence market is highly competitive, with established suppliers such as China, Russia and the United States operating in Southeast Asia for decades. To remain competitive, UAE firms must differentiate themselves through flexible financing, technology transfer arrangements, and niche capabilities.
Conclusion
UAE–Southeast Asia defence cooperation is best characterized as pragmatic, incremental, and industry-driven. The UAE’s elevation to ASEAN Sectoral Dialogue Partner status provides a diplomatic foundation for expanding engagement, while major defence industrial agreements, such as those with Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam, and Singapore, demonstrate tangible progress. As Southeast Asia continues to diversify its defence partnerships amid geopolitical uncertainty, the UAE is likely to play a modest but growing role in regional security architecture.
Although the relationship does not constitute a formal strategic alliance, it reflects converging interests in maritime security, counterterrorism, and defence industrial development. If current trends continue, UAE–Southeast Asia defence cooperation will deepen gradually, anchored in economic interdependence and shared strategic pragmatism.
