UAE Rules Set off BlackBerry Storm

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Byline: Kathryn Watson, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

Planning to take your faithful BlackBerry along on a trip to the United Arab Emirates? Think again.

The showdown between the Middle Eastern nation and the makers of the popular electronic devices escalated Monday, with Research in Motion (RIM) assuring its customers that it would not alter its security methods, while the United Arab Emirates said its BlackBerry ban, though it won't cover phone calls, also will apply to Americans and other foreign visitors.

The State Department on Monday said the impending ban sets a ?dangerous precedent," a statement that prompted a volley back from the United Arab Emirates Embassy in Washington.

The dispute started Sunday, when the United Arab Emirates government announced that it would block RIM's service to the half-million local users, citing the company's repeated failure to comply with national security rules.

?The suspension is a result of the failure of ongoing attempts, dating back to 2007, to bring BlackBerry services in the UAE in line with telecommunications regulations," a press release on the country's …