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United Arab Emirates

August 25, 2026

Abu Dhabi 7:10 am

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Khor Fakkan Container Terminal

Analysis

UAE-Iran trade relationship becomes key test of Trump’s wartime strategy

The Gulf state suspended trade with Iran after new attacks in August. Experts point to risks for both sides as the Trump administration seeks to squeeze Tehran economically.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Iranians drive past an anti-US billboard at Enghelab Square in central Tehran, Aug. 3, 2026.

Trump’s Iran ‘economic D-Day’ threat sends oil prices above $94

In a Truth Social post, the president threatened that any country that provides a financial lifeline to Iran will face "tremendous economic consequences."

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Iraq seeks special Hormuz access from Iran in scramble to keep oil flowing

As Iran's parliament speaker holds talks in Baghdad, Iraq has asked Tehran for special consideration for its oil exports.

Latest News

UAE halts all trade ties with Iran after missile attack

Ships are docked along a pier at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on July 14, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

Oil nears $92 on UAE missile alert as Trump claims Iran talks stuck

Leon Neal/Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Mohammed Soliman

In Washington, DC, reporting on Gulf politics

Iran, Turkey divide Saudi-led bloc

Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is opposed to plans by the other members of the Anti-Terror Quartet to confront Iran and Hezbollah in the Levant, to maintain Lebanon's relatively stable position.

Turkey’s misguided Middle East policy: From Syria, Iraq to the Gulf

Turkey’s misguided foreign policy has increasingly become apparent in three main spheres: Syria, Iraq and the Gulf region.

Shock suspension of Iranian hard-line daily over headline

Kayhan, the mouthpiece of Iran’s hard-liners, has been suspended for two days after a headline suggesting that Yemen’s Houthi movement will attack Dubai.

IRGC commander denies Trump claim on Saudi missile attack

IRGC commander Mohammad Ali Jafari denied that Iran was involved in the Yemeni missile attack on Riyadh.

How new joint US-GCC sanctions will impact Qatar crisis

After Qatar joined Saudi Arabia and the United States in imposing new sanctions on individuals suspected of financing terror groups in Yemen, it will be harder for the GCC states involved in the blockade of Qatar to make their case to Washington.

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan (2nd L), Prime Minister and Vice-President of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum (2nd R), and Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir (R) attend the opening ceremony of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates February 19, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer - RC1101053F70

Can UAE be a bridge between the US, Sudan?

The UAE has persuaded the United States to lift sanctions against Sudan given Sudan’s efforts to counter Iran’s expanding and consolidating regional influence.

United Arab Emirates

Qatari crisis seeps into UNESCO elections

The Qatari crisis has cast a shadow across the election of UNESCO's next director-general with competing candidates from Egypt and Qatar.

Are Yemeni rebels imploding?

Saudi Arabia's hope to exit the Yemen scene could depend largely on Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Yemeni rebel factions' falling apart.

Qatar's foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani (R) and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson attend a joint news conference in Doha, Qatar, July 11, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon - RTX3B08M

Iran’s role in Qatar’s new foreign policy

Rather than forcing Qatar to sever ties with Tehran, the Saudi-led boycott on Qatar has instead pushed the emirate closer to Iran.

Palestinians sit in a tent outside their apartments, which witnesses said were destroyed in an Israeli offensive, during a 72-hour truce in Beit Lahiya town in the northern Gaza Strip August 11, 2014. Israeli and Palestinian negotiators resumed indirect talks mediated by Egypt on Monday on ending a month-old Gaza war, Egypt's state news agency said, after a new 72-hour truce appeared to be holding. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR4214M

UAE, Egypt approve more aid for Gaza, Hamas

It looks like support is on the way for destitute Gaza via the UAE and Egypt.

United Arab Emirates

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) welcomes General Khalifa Haftar (L), commander in the Libyan National Army (LNA), during a meeting in Moscow, Russia August 14, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - RTS1BPNE

Russia weighs its role as arbiter in Libya

As Moscow works to shore up its influence in bringing Libya’s rival governments together, it is examining whether Gen. Khalifa Hifter is more of an asset or a liability.

United Arab Emirates

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, June 19, 2017. Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RTS17RSB

Saudi Arabia engages Iraq at Iran's dismay

Iraq's rapprochement with Arab Sunni countries including Saudi Arabia is putting increased pressure on Iran.