United Arab Emirates' Sheiks Sow Billions
As They Reap Benefits of Oil Boom
Abu Dhabi, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — This tiny Middle Eastern country sitting on one-tenth of the world’s oil is experiencing a building boom as the sheiks who rule the United Arab Emirates are spending their petrodollars on a series of projects and charities that reach out to the West.
The Gulf’s latest landmark is the Emirates Palace, a luxury hotel that’s effectively a monument to oil wealth. Thirteen types of marble were imported to make floors fit for a sultan, and silk was shipped in for wallpaper.
The Rulers’ Suites, the hotel’s most expensive, are open only to presidents and kings of Gulf Cooperation Council countries. The Palace Suite, which recently housed Tony Blair, is more modest — just $15,000 a night....