Claim restatement and timeline: The State Department media note dated 2026-01-08 states that Under Secretary Jacob Helberg would travel to
the Middle East (Jan 9–18, 2026) and "In
the United Arab Emirates, he will lead
the United States’ delegation to the 11th U.S.-UAE Economic Policy Dialogue."
Authoritative scheduling evidence: The Department of State notice explicitly assigns Helberg to lead the
U.S. delegation in the UAE and lists the travel dates starting January 9, 2026.
Absence of post-event confirmation as of 2026-01-09: Searches for a joint statement, State Department readout, UAE government (WAM) release, photographs, or other post-meeting materials for an 11th U.S.-UAE Economic Policy Dialogue produced no public confirmation by 2026-01-09.
Context and expectation: Prior Economic Policy Dialogues (e.g., the 10th on 2023-11-01) generated joint statements and readouts from both sides, so the lack of a similar release for the 11th meeting is notable.
Assessment: The leadership role was officially scheduled and is plausible, but completion (Helberg actually leading the delegation while in the
UAE) is not verifiable in public sources by the projected completion date (2026-01-09).
Verdict and rationale: in_progress — scheduled and likely but not yet publicly confirmed; follow-up is required to verify the meeting took place and Helberg’s leadership role.
Follow-up recommendation: Re-check for official State Department readouts, a U.S.-UAE joint statement, or UAE government releases after the visit (recommended follow-up date below).