Amid war with the US and Israel, Iran has warned the United Arab Emirates (UAE) against further deepening Abu Dhabi’s engagement with Tel Aviv following the recent regional escalation. Speaking to the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA), Mohsen Rezaei, a former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander and current secretary of Tehran’s Expediency Council, claimed Iran has exercised restraint but drew a clear line.
The UAE has been the target of some of Iran’s most intense strikes on its Gulf neighbours, housing US bases during the war with American and Israeli forces. Recent reports have also suggested that Abu Dhabi may have carried out retaliatory strikes of its own against Tehran.
Tehran has not “closed the door to friendship in dealing with the United Arab Emirates, but they should know that Iran’s patience has limits.” Rezaei reportedly said.
“We are aware that there are relations and exchanges between the UAE and Israel; the UAE should not become entangled in Israel’s plots and schemes,” he added.
Tehran’s threat came after a drone strike sparked a fire on the edge of the UAE’s sole nuclear power plant on Sunday in what authorities called an “unprovoked terrorist attack”. No one was blamed, but it highlighted the risk of renewed war as the United States and Iran signalled they were ready to fight again. There were also no reported injuries or radiological release due to the attack.
Israel-UAE Ties
The UAE was the first Gulf country, alongside Bahrain, to recognise Israel in 2020 under the US-mediated Abraham Accords.
After facing barrages of Iranian strikes that threatened its economic future, Abu Dhabi has moved closer to Tel Aviv, hosting air defences and personnel from Israel. The move has granted the tourism hub, where 90 per cent of the population is foreign, access to Israeli air defence systems to help fend off Iranian attacks.
Since the war started, Emirati officials have also touted Israeli cooperation as a model for the way ahead.
Last month, a Times of Israel report quoted UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash as saying that Israeli and American influence in the Gulf would only increase as a result of Iran’s “strategy” in the region. Israel is widely believed to be the only nuclear-armed country in the region but has neither confirmed nor denied having atomic weapons.