UAE and Iran Meet Face-to-Face to Try to Deescalate Tensions

(Bloomberg) -- Senior national security officials from the United Arab Emirates and Iran held a face-to-face meeting for the first time since the start of the US-Israeli war against Tehran, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

This week’s meeting marked a stark turnaround for both sides and comes amid their growing acknowledgment of the importance of calmer bilateral ties, the people said, asking not to be named discussing sensitive matters.

The UAE’s leaders want to keep their bold economic ambitions, including investing billions of dollars in increased oil production and in AI data centers, on track. The relationship is important for Tehran too, as the Gulf nation was among the Islamic Republic’s biggest trading partners before the war began and a key conduit for sanctioned Iranian oil.

Abu Dhabi’s latest contact with Iran, the people said, was mainly motivated by the wealthy Gulf state seeking a detente with a regime it considers an enemy but realizes won’t be dislodged from power.

Since the war began in late February, Iran has attacked the UAE the most of any country. Abu Dhabi struck back on multiple occasions and has taken the most aggressive stance among its Arab neighbors toward the Islamic Republic. The UAE appears to be now following the same path as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which have also been hit by Iran and its proxies but are trying diplomacy to de-escalate tensions.

Riyadh, which has seen energy facilities and military bases struck, resumed contact with Tehran at the foreign minister level in early April. Qatar, which suffered a major attack against its Ras Laffan natural gas facility, has been the most enthusiastic in seeking a rapprochement. It hosted a delegation from Iran late last month and is increasingly involved as a mediator between Washington and Tehran.

All three Arab states are conscious of the need to coexist with a neighbor across the Persian Gulf with a population of 90 million and significant military power, despite the extensive damage it’s suffered from the US and Israeli bombardment.

Iran’s attacks threatened to imperil Dubai and Abu Dhabi’s ascent as hubs for hedge funds and other financial firms. The conflict hurt oil sales and tourism, both key planks of the UAE economy.

One of the people said the meeting was the culmination of multiple attempts by the Iranians to reestablish high-level dialog with Abu Dhabi. The UAE had held off, they said, to first verify that any interlocutors had a direct line to new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Several Iranian leaders, including Khamenei’s predecessor and father, Ali, were killed in the war. The US has said it’s difficult to work out who’s now in charge.

The only other known contact between the UAE and Iran during the war came in mid-April, shortly after a ceasefire. UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed spoke with Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf about ways to ease tensions in the region.

After that call and a visit by the UAE’s Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed to Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, a channel was opened, one of the people said.

The UAE’s foreign policy is guided by promoting de-escalation and reducing tensions across the Middle East, while advancing lasting peace and stability, an official said to Bloomberg, asking not to be named in line with the government’s rules.

The UAE supports efforts, including those undertaken by the US, to protect people in the region from the repercussions of the conflict, the person said.

This week’s meeting marks a further shift in the stance of the UAE. In late May, its President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed joined counterparts from Qatar and Saudi Arabia in urging US President Donald Trump not to resume full-scale hostilities against Iran and to give negotiations a further chance.

Since the start the US-Israel war against Iran, Iran has targeted the UAE with close to 3,000 missiles and drones. The vast majority have been intercepted by an advanced defense system that’s included help from allies such as the US, UK, France and Israel. Still, at least 13 people have been killed and sites such as oil and gas facilities, ports and hotels have suffered billions of dollars in damage.

The country’s leadership viewed Iran’s attacks, including the targeting of the Barakah nuclear power plant west of Abu Dhabi last month by Tehran-backed Iraqi militias, as unprovoked acts of terrorism. 

This prompted it to adopt a hawkish position at the start of the war. Beyond its strikes on Iran, it tried and failed to convince fellow Gulf Arab states like Saudi Arabia and Qatar to a mount a joint response to deter the Iranians, Bloomberg News has reported.

The continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the tenuous ceasefire since early April and the slow pace of negotiations between the US and Iran has changed Abu Dhabi’s calculus, the people said. The UAE’s focus at the moment is to minimize any further damage and disruptions to its economy and security, the people added.

There is some evidence its efforts are paying off. Iran has not fired at the UAE since the Barakah plant was targeted. This week, as US-Iran skirmishes have intensified, Tehran has targeted Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.

On Thursday, Trump said he would attack Iran for a third night running as his frustration over a failure to get a deal mounts.

The UAE has maintained diplomatic ties with Iran but has closed several social, medical and educational institutions in the country linked to the Islamic Republic. It has also revoked residency visas for some Iranians, but still hosts hundreds of thousands of them.

Anwar Gargash, a senior diplomatic adviser to the UAE’s leader, has repeatedly spoken about shattered trust with Iran. He’s said any proper re-engagement is contingent on the unconditional reopening of Hormuz and the payment of reparations by Tehran. The UAE also says a US-Iran deal must address the Islamic Republic’s nuclear capabilities, ballistic missiles and support for proxy militias in the region.

While Trump is keen to curb Iran’s nuclear program, the US seems increasingly likely to exclude the militias and ballistic missiles from any peace deal.

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