UAE Expands Alternative Trade Routes amid Iran War

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is expanding alternative routes for energy exports and trade to prevent them from being held hostage by the ongoing war with Iran, presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said on Monday.

The conflict has significantly affected the Gulf Arab states, including the UAE, as Tehran has fired missiles at the country and attacked its oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Our energy exports will not be held hostage, nor will our trade and economic activity”, Gargash told the Hili Forum in Abu Dhabi. The UAE is expanding port capacity along its eastern coast as well as pipelines, railroads and other trade routes.

Gargash said a functional relationship with Iran could be restored, but rebuilding trust with its neighbors after the attacks could take decades. The UAE suspended all financial and economic transactions with Iran in August, citing military escalation and missile threats from Tehran.

He also criticized the Gulf Arab states’ response to the Iranian attacks, saying their collective action had fallen short. While the countries had long broadly agreed on the challenge posed by Iran, he said they had failed to translate that shared understanding into a sufficiently united and strategic response.

(Reuters, bak)