Reports retrieved through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit show evidence that a retired US Marine General, Jim Mattis, discreetly consulted for the United Arab Emirates government on its war on Yemen, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, 

Mattis served as a military advisor on the "operational, tactical, informational, and ethical aspects" of the war on Yemen at the personal request of Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, according to his application to the Marine Corps and State Department in 2015. He also mentioned on his application that he would be rewarded, but the amount remains unknown and so do the full extent and length of his duties.

A representative of Mattis divulged that he was not rewarded for the help and that the information on his application was simply designed to spark a thorough investigation.

However, according to the records acquired by The Post, his application was rapidly passed through each level of the process, with preliminary clearance from the Marine Corps in two weeks and final approval from the State Department in 1.5 months. In comparison, the procedure often takes months or years.

The Washington Post filed a lawsuit in 2021 to access data of former US military soldiers working for foreign countries. Its findings in 2022 indicated that the UAE employed more US veterans than any other foreign country and paid them far more than their previous military salary. Federal agencies declined to divulge Mattis' documents until last October when The Post obtained a judge's order based on the possibility that Mattis' job in the UAE conflicted with his work at the Pentagon.

Mattis kept his past work with the UAE hidden in his public work history, along with his Office of Government Ethics financial disclosure filings and 2019 biography when he was appointed Secretary of Defense in January 2017. 

Although he revealed it to the Senate Armed Services Committee, other senators told The Post that they were unaware of it. Multiple US officials stationed in the Middle East also told The Post that they had not known of his history working with the UAE.

After resigning as Pentagon Secretary in December 2018, Mattis sought federal authority to work for the UAE as a featured speaker at a conference held by Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. Mattis' application indicated that he would receive $100,000 in addition to flights and accommodations.

Read more: UAE resorts to the US to face Yemeni missiles, drones

Close Trump advisor a UAE agent

In July 2021,  the US authorities announced arresting a former advisor close to former President Donald Trump on charges of illegally lobbying Trump on behalf of the UAE between 2016 and 2018.

Acting Assistant Attorney General of the National Security Division Mark Lesko said in a statement that Barrack (74), along with two other defendants facing the same charges, "repeatedly capitalized on Barrack’s friendships and access to a candidate who was eventually elected President, high-ranking campaign and government officials, and the American media to advance the policy goals of a foreign government without disclosing their true allegiances.”

It is worth noting that Barrack was an “unofficial advisor” to Trump’s presidential campaign in April 2016, before becoming chairman of the Presidential Inauguration Committee following Trump’s election victory in November of the same year.

As of January 2017, Barrack even informally advised US officials on Middle East policy.