The United Arab Emirates rejected “attempts to justify Iranian terrorist attacks” on Friday after Tehran accused the wealthy Gulf state of playing an active role in the Middle East war.
UAE Minister of State Khalifa bin Shaheen Al Marar “affirmed the UAE’s categorical rejection of Iranian claims and attempts to justify Iranian terrorist attacks targeting the UAE” and other nations, a UAE Foreign Ministry statement said.
The statement followed Thursday’s BRICS meeting in New Delhi, during which Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a Telegram post: “The UAE is an active partner in this aggression, and there is no doubt about it.”
In a statement carried by the Iranian state news agency IRNA, Araghchi said he “advised the representative of the UAE that the Zionist regime (Israel) and the United States cannot guarantee their security” and that Abu Dhabi had “seen the consequences of the presence of American bases” on its soil.
The UAE has been “subjected to repeated and unjustified Iranian terrorist attacks,” including about 3,000 attacks by ballistic and cruise missiles and drones, its statement said.
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“The UAE reserves all its sovereign, legal, diplomatic, and military rights to confront any threat, claim, or hostile act,” Marar was quoted as saying.
India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, right, shakes hands with UAE’s Foreign Minister of State Khalifa bin Shaheen Al Marar as he arrives for a two-day BRICS nations meeting in New Delhi, India, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
“The UAE does not seek protection from anyone and is capable of deterring aggression,” he added.
“It reserves its full and legitimate right to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity to ensure the protection of its citizens, residents, and visitors.”
While the UAE hasn’t commented on specific military responses to Iran’s attacks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that the UAE secretly carried out military strikes on Iran during the war.
Shortly after the US and Israel launched their campaign on February 28, the UAE tried unsuccessfully to coordinate with other Gulf nations for a joint response to Iranian attacks, Bloomberg reported Friday, citing two people with knowledge of the matter.
Earlier this week, senior US officials confirmed previous reports that Israel had sent an Iron Dome battery to the UAE to help defend it, along with soldiers to operate it.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the premier visited the UAE during the war, which Abu Dhabi swiftly denied. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, and David Barnea and David Zini, respectively the heads of the Mossad and Shin Bet security agencies, also reportedly paid wartime visits to the UAE.
Israel launched its campaign against Iran, alongside the US, to degrade the Iranian regime’s military capabilities, distance threats posed by Iran — including its nuclear and ballistic missile programs — and “create the conditions” for the Iranian people to topple the regime, the military and other Israeli leaders have said.
The ceasefire declared by Trump last month came with those core declared goals of the war unfulfilled.
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