His Excellency Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Bawardi, Minister of State for Defence Affairs, affirmed that His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, “may God protect him”, who God Almighty endowed him with an inspiring spirit, insightful vision, and a solid will that does not know the impossible, has confidence in the capabilities of his citizens. His Highness works day and night, following in the footsteps of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, “may God have mercy on him”, believing that there are no limits for dreams and there is no place for the impossible. As long as we possess strong determination and work faithfully, sincerely, and patiently, our dreams are translated by facts, and as HH. said in a statement to the media about the probe reaching its goal: “Even if it did not arrive, we entered history. Our goal is to give hope to all Arabs that we are able to compete with the rest of the nations and peoples.”
In a speech on February 9, 2021, on the occasion of the arrival of the “Probe of Hope” to Mars, His Excellency added that achieving the dream and hope for a new future full of goodness, progress and prosperity can only be accomplished with science and culture and not only with money, and this is what was confirmed by our father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, who said: “The size of countries is not measured by wealth and money. Money is nothing but a means for great goals that can only be achieved by science, and the ability of countries to provide a decent and safe life for their citizens, and here in the UAE we give importance to science and scientists in various fields.”
Let us follow in his footsteps over fifty years of knowledge, work and diligence, so that the UAE – by the grace of God – may achieve glory and become a shining star in space.
His Excellency considered that the Hope Probe is a new outfit that adorns our dear homeland, woven from the threads of hope for a bright future, woven by the hands of its children starting from the vision of the wise leadership which has the will to challenge and probe the depths of space, realizing that entering the future era requires confronting its challenges and owning its sciences. So, the youth of the Emirates led the journey of the Probe over more than a hundred days to reach Mars and enter its orbit successfully, so that the ninth of February 2021 becomes a watershed day in the history of the UAE.
His Excellency Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Bawardi said, “Throughout the journey of the probe, our hearts sparked with supplication, and our eyes followed its path until the moment it reached the orbit of Mars, culminating in a successful fifty-year journey and announcing the start of a new era, while ambition does not stop and hope is endless, we look forward to more successes in the next fifty years. With the arms of the people of the Emirates and their sincere efforts, our country has become in the ranks of developed countries, establishing itself a prominent global position in the field of universe and space sciences, and with reaching the Red Planet, it has proven that there is no place for the impossible, so congratulations to the leadership and people of the Emirates, may God protect them, and to more successes. God is the Grantor of success.
