The entertainment giant is joining forces with Miral, a company based in the city, which plans to build the new park on Yas Island - on the outskirts of the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The theme park will be constructed and operated by Miral, with Disney handling the design and development although it is not funding the project.

The company will earn royalties and service fees but it has not been revealed which characters and franchises could feature in the park, which is Disney's first attraction to be constructed in the Middle East.

The announcement comes as US President Donald Trump visits the region next week as he has promised business deals with the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement: "This is a thrilling moment for our company as we announce plans to build an exciting Disney theme park resort in Abu Dhabi, whose culture is rich with an appreciation of the arts and creativity.

"As our seventh theme park destination, it will rise from this land in spectacular fashion, blending contemporary architecture with cutting-edge technology to offer guests deeply immersive entertainment experiences in unique and modern ways."

Iger explained that imagineers have already started to design the park but declined to say when he expects the attraction to open.

He told CNBC: "We're not pinning down a date yet.

"It typically takes us between 18 months and two years to design and fully develop and approximately five years to build but we're not making any commitments right now."