Yousef Al Otaiba, born on January 19, 1974, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to Mana Al Otaiba, a prominent petroleum magnate and former OPEC president, grew up in Cairo, Egypt. He attended Cairo American College, graduating in 1991, before studying international relations at Georgetown University, though 2017 reports from The Intercept indicated that Georgetown's registrar confirmed he did not earn a degree there despite prior claims by the UAE embassy. He later graduated from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces at the National Defense University in 2000 via the International Fellows Program and participated in the Georgetown Leadership Seminar in 2007. Al Otaiba began his diplomatic career as Senior Advisor and Director of International Affairs to Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, advancing UAE security interests and partnerships. Appointed UAE Ambassador to the United States on July 28, 2008, and promoted to Minister of State in 2017, he has served briefly as non-resident Ambassador to Mexico. As a key figure in UAE foreign policy and U.S.-UAE relations, Al Otaiba has been instrumental in strengthening bilateral ties, including the US-UAE 123 Agreement for civilian nuclear energy in 2009, the Abraham Accords normalizing UAE-Israel relations in 2020, and cooperation on security, counterterrorism, AI, and critical minerals. Named to TIME's 100 Most Influential People list in 2020, he engages in philanthropy through boards like Special Olympics (joined 2019, hosted World Games in Abu Dhabi), American University in Cairo, and Children's National Medical Center, supporting causes in health, education, and inclusion. He is married to Abeer Al Otaiba, with children Samia and Omar; his sister is Hend Al Otaiba and aunt Moza Saeed Al Otaiba. Residing in Washington, DC, Al Otaiba maintains strong networks, including with US figures like Jared Kushner, and contributes op-eds to outlets like The Wall Street Journal and CNN on topics from counterterrorism to Arab youth identity. He supports UAE USA United campaign for cultural exchanges and has affiliations with organizations like Meridian International Center and The Washington Institute.