Regional ripples growing? UAE suspends all trade, finance deals with Iran after missile attack
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced Wednesday that it had suspended all trade, commercial, and financial dealings with Iran, citing growing regional tensions and security concerns as Abu Dhabi accused Tehran of firing ballistic missiles around its territory in the Gulf in a regional expansion of the US-Iran conflict.
“In light of regional escalations, all trade, commercial exchanges, and financial transactions with Iran have been halted until further notice,” UAE Foreign Ministry Communications Director Afra Al Hameli said.
The announcement came after the UAE accused Iran of launching two ballistic missiles toward shipping routes in the Gulf. According to the UAE, its air defense systems detected the missiles, with one landing outside the country’s territorial waters and the other falling within them.
In a subsequent statement, the UAE said assessments indicated that the missiles were aimed at maritime navigation and eventually landed in the sea.
Iran, however, denied the allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei rejected the UAE’s claims, calling them baseless and warning that such accusations could undermine regional trust and ongoing security efforts.
The latest dispute comes amid heightened tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route through which vessels departing from UAE ports must pass. Iran has previously warned that the strait would remain closed until it reached a peace agreement with the United States.
Shortly before the UAE released its first statement, residents received an emergency phone alert warning of a potential missile threat and urging them to seek shelter in the nearest secure building. The warning was lifted soon afterwards.
The incident marked the first missile alert in the UAE since July, following an earlier false alarm in June. Before that, the last missile warning had been issued in early May.
The UAE has also reported repeated attacks on tankers operated by the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in recent weeks.
Since the outbreak of the Middle East conflict on February 28, the UAE has faced some of the most intense attacks in the region, reporting nearly 3,000 missiles and drones launched toward the country. Although a memorandum of understanding implemented in June briefly reduced hostilities, the agreement has since collapsed, raising fresh concerns about regional stability.
With inputs from AFP
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