UAE SUSPENDS TIES WITH IRAN
PHOTO CAPTION: A damaged building in the vicinity of Dubai Creek Harbour after a drone fell on it, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 12, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Stringer
DUBAI, Aug. 19 — The United Arab Emirates has suspended all financial and economic transactions with Iran until further notice after accusing Tehran of a new missile threat, bringing longstanding tensions between the two Gulf powers back into focus.
The UAE, a close U.S. ally and major regional oil producer, was the Gulf state most heavily hit by Tehran during the early stages of the wider Middle East war. The last reported attack on UAE territory before the latest incident was a May 4 strike on Fujairah port, a major oil export hub.
The decision to halt commercial ties followed a statement from the UAE Defense Ministry saying it had detected two ballistic missiles launched from Iran. The incident marked the first time in months that residents received phone alerts warning of a possible threat.
The ministry said its assessment was that the missiles had targeted “maritime traffic.” Both fell into the sea, it said. The UAE later sent another phone alert telling residents the situation was safe and normal activities could resume.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected the UAE’s claim that the missiles targeted maritime traffic, calling the assertion “baseless.”
UAE says it remains committed to dialogue
Dubai, the UAE’s main commercial center, has long been one of Iran’s most important economic lifelines.
Afra Al Hameli, director of the Strategic Communications Department at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Abu Dhabi remained committed to dialogue and cooperation aimed at advancing peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
But Al Hameli said that because of regional escalations threatening regional and international peace and security, all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran had been suspended.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, separately rejected reports that the Emirates was providing financial facilities to Iran, calling them “false and part of desperate media campaigns.”
The UAE was pulled into the broader regional conflict that began in February with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. Iranian attacks on UAE territory stopped in May, while attacks continued against neighboring Kuwait and Bahrain.
Attacks at sea involving Emirati vessels, however, did not stop.
In August, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, one of the world’s largest energy producers, said its operations were being significantly affected by what it described as unprovoked attacks on its personnel and assets as it sought to continue meeting customer demand in an “exceptionally challenging environment.”
ADNOC said several of its vessels had been attacked with missiles and drones while transiting the Strait of Hormuz since the conflict began.
The latest missile incident came as a 60-day window for U.S.-Iran peace negotiations expired without a breakthrough, raising concerns about renewed escalation in a conflict that has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz since February and unsettled global markets.
Iran has not claimed responsibility for attacks on ADNOC vessels. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have previously threatened action against ships using the strait if they are linked to Tehran’s adversaries or fail to comply with Iranian directives.
(Source: Reuters)
