“They’ll have much cleaner and easier access to dual-use technology and other technologies with defense implications,” Michael Horowitz told Breaking Defense.
Commerce Department reclassification: the A:5 upgrade, July 10
On July 10 the U.S. Commerce Department announced that the United Arab Emirates had been moved into Country Group A:5 under the Export Administration Regulations. The Commerce Department framed the decision as “in recognition of the UAE’s status as a U.S. Major Defense Partner and its support in advancing U.S. national security interests, including Operation Epic Fury.” The announcement said the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) will “remove the UAE from EAR Country Groups D:3 and D:4,” a change the department said would, among other things, “eliminate restrictions on support for the UAE’s unmanned aerial vehicle programs.”
Permitted flows: what A:5 makes easier
The A:5 classification makes the UAE government and approved companies eligible for license-free exports, re-exports, and in‑country transfers of certain items listed for Country Group A:5 destinations. The Commerce Department's list includes some military items, “commercial satellites and spacecraft,” and dual-use items useful in oil and gas production, desalination, civil nuclear power generation, and other items. Analysts in the story said the immediate operational effect is to reduce approval friction for components, software, technical data and dual‑use equipment that feed into defense programs.
Implications for Emirati drones and defense partnerships (EDGE, Anduril, General Atomics)
Analysts told Breaking Defense the change is likely to accelerate Emirati production and sustainment of high‑tech unmanned systems by making subsystems and production equipment easier to obtain. Kristian Alexander said the reclassification creates “a more permissive regulatory environment for the routine movement of controlled components, software, technical data and dual‑use equipment,” which can shorten procurement timelines, ease sustainment and “facilitate closer cooperation between American defense companies and UAE institutions.”
Albert Vidal of the International Institute for Strategic Studies highlighted specific projects that could benefit. He pointed to a joint venture between Anduril and EDGE to manufacture drones and said the A:5 status could facilitate an existing proposal for General Atomics Aeronautical Systems and Abu Dhabi-based Calidus Aerospace to co‑produce MQ‑9 aircraft in the UAE, if an MQ‑9 deal is approved. C. Mark Brinkley, a General Atomics spokesperson, agreed the change wouldn’t affect “current MQ‑9 discussions,” but said it “does many things to support U.S. defense partnerships with the UAE overall, and is expected to help us work more closely together with much less red tape.”
AI compute, G42 and license‑free chip access
The Commerce announcement explicitly cited AI as an area of benefit. The Emirati technology holding company G42 and its subsidiary Core 42 were named as entities that “may receive items license-free” under the new designation. Vidal said the A:5 status would replace “case-by-case approvals of advanced chips sales for license-free access, for both the UAE government and G42, which will accelerate the country’s AI ambitions.”
G42’s chief global affairs officer, Talal Al Kaissi, told attendees at the Aspen Security Forum 2026 that the change “doesn’t remove all regulations and restrictions” with respect to AI compute. “The A:5 has other benefits around space and around other types of technologies. But as it relates to AI compute, there are still going to be the right guardrails in place,” he said, adding that G42 will “continue to double down on that effort because we see this as part of a competitive advantage.”
F‑35, MQ‑9 and limits of the Commerce move
Experts in the report were clear that the A:5 reclassification does not alter all export controls. Major weapons and defense platforms governed by the U.S. Munitions List remain regulated under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and enforced by the State Department, and will continue to be subject to those controls. The analysts do not expect the A:5 move to change the stalled F‑35 sale to the UAE or current MQ‑9 export discussions, both of which are ITAR‑regulated and controlled by the State Department.
What this means for EDGE Group, General Atomics, and G42
- EDGE Group: Could gain easier access to components, production equipment, software and technical cooperation, shortening procurement and sustainment timelines, according to Kristian Alexander.
- General Atomics and Calidus: If an MQ‑9 sale is approved under ITAR, the new environment could facilitate co‑production proposals in the UAE; General Atomics says the change supports closer work “with much less red tape.”
- G42/Core 42: May receive license‑free access to advanced chips and other items listed to A:5 destinations, potentially accelerating AI compute ambitions while retaining “guardrails,” per Talal Al Kaissi.
The Commerce Department’s reclassification puts the UAE on what Michael Horowitz described as essentially a “most preferred list” for U.S. dual‑use exports and could steer Emirati procurement and partnerships toward American suppliers. Horowitz added that “the goal of the policy change is undoubtedly to increase the competitiveness of US companies in the UAE market and prevent China from becoming the vendor of choice for the UAE across the AI stack. Whether this works or not remains to be seen.”
