January 26, 2014, Abu Dhabi ~ President His Highness Shaeikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan is in stable condition following surgery on Friday, the Ministry of Presidential Affairs said on Saturday.

The statement, carried by WAM, said the President had suffered a stroke on Friday morning, and immediately underwent surgery. “His Highness’s health is now stable,” the ministry said.

“May God safeguard him and grant him a quick recovery,” the report added.

Born in 1948, Sheikh Khalifa is known as a pro-Western modernizer whose low-key approach helped steer the Gulf Arab state through a tense era in regional politics.

He came to power after the death of his father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahayan, in 2004.

Analysts say the popular leader has helped maintain the ruling family’s ties with important clans and leaders of the other emirates, helping the UAE manage the fall-out from Dubai’s debt crisis in 2009, and has tried to balance ties with countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United States.

He is the eldest of Sheikh Zayed’s 19 sons.

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