“Disney to Build a Magic Kingdom Theme Park in the Middle East”

Mickey Mouse is headed to the Middle East.

In a new test for its singularly American brand, the Walt Disney Company said on Wednesday that it had reached an agreement with the Miral Group, an arm of the Abu Dhabi government, to build a theme park resort on the Persian Gulf…

Disney and Miral declined to give acreage, budget or construction timeline details for what they are calling Disneyland Abu Dhabi…

…the United Arab Emirates has grown into a tourist destination…

The Miral Group, which built Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi and SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, made Disney a hard-to-refuse financial offer…

Disney could also face criticism for its partnership with the Emirates, which is ruled as an autocracy with limits to freedom of expression, speech and the press, and which provides arms to fighters accused of atrocities in a devastating civil war in Sudan…

…Migrant workers are often subject to inhumane conditions, according to human rights groups and the State Department. Homosexuality is illegal…

In a statement, a Disney spokeswoman said, “We are respectful of the countries and cultures where we do business, while always adhering to our own standards and values.”…