Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab has served as Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations in New York since April 2024.

Prior to his appointment as Permanent Representative, Ambassador Abushahab served as Deputy Permanent Representative of the UAE to the UN in New York from August 2021 to April 2024 during the UAE’s term as an elected member of the UN Security Council.

Prior to his posting in New York, Ambassador Abushahab served as the UAE Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, and the European Union from January 2017 to July 2021.

Ambassador Abushahab served as the Director of Policy Planning at the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2017. In that position, he was responsible for providing strategic analysis and insights, and played an instrumental role in delivering on key projects – including the establishment of the Emirates Diplomatic Academy and the launch of the UAE-US Sawab Center for countering online radicalization.

During his diplomatic career in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Abushahab held a variety of other positions. Between 2012 and 2013, he served as Director of the Department of American and Pacific Affairs. From 2010 to 2012, he headed the International Climate Change Division in the Ministry’s Directorate of Energy and Climate Change, where he led several UAE delegations to the UNFCCC’s climate change negotiations, managed the UAE’s engagement in the Clean Energy Ministerial, and participated in the G20 Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency Working Group.

Earlier in his career, Ambassador Abushahab spent five years at the Permanent Mission of the UAE to the UN in New York (2005-2010), where he represented the UAE on the First and Second Committees.

Ambassador Abushahab holds a Bachelor of Arts from American University in Washington, D.C. He is passionate about art, design, and traveling, and he enjoys playing padel tennis and snowboarding. Ambassador Abushahab is married to Mrs Amna Almheiri, the UAE’s Consul General in New York, and they have four children.