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United Arab Emirates

April 30, 2026

Abu Dhabi 5:25 pm

34°C

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

OPEC's fourth-largest producer will leave the cartel on May 1, marking the most significant departure in the group’s history as the war changes Abu Dhabi's relationship priorities.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

MUMEN KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images

Why UAE's decision to leave OPEC is major shift for cartel

The UAE accounts for 12% of OPEC's output, but tensions had been simmering over intragroup rivalries and the country wanting to export more oil.

United Arab Emirates

Latest News

First LNG tanker transits Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP via Getty Images

UAE to leave OPEC on May 1

Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images)

United Arab Emirates

UAE’s cash request tests US ties as Iran war strains Gulf financial muscle

A view of Dubai Marina in Dubai on March 3, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

IEA delivers grim gas supply forecast as oil notches 15% weekly rise

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker is moored at a LNG berth in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, prefecture April 8, 2026.

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

Labourers work near the Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world, in Dubai May 9, 2013. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: BUSINESS CONSTRUCTION) - RTXZFXJ

UAE Needs More Transparency On Human Rights

A string of recent human rights abuses has placed the UAE under international scrutiny.

United Arab Emirates

Video of UAE Official Beating Indian Driver Sparks Debate

UAE anti-defamation laws are again under scrutiny as the Indian man who filmed the assault is put in jail.

United Arab Emirates

An Egyptian Air Force F-16 fighter jet flies low over thousands of anti-government protesters gathered at Tahrir square in Cairo January 30, 2011. Egyptian air force fighter planes buzzed low over Cairo on Sunday, helicopters hovered above and extra troop trucks appeared in a central square where protesters were demanding an end to President Hosni Mubarak's rule. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTXXAH3

US Should Not Cut Aid to Egypt’s Military

US military aid can sustain American leverage and assist Egypt’s democratic transition.

A man walks past the Dubai Courts November 1, 2012. REUTERS/Jumana ElHeloueh (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: CRIME LAW) - RTR39UPY

UAE Trial Adds to Controversy Over Press Freedom, Political Islam

Guilty verdicts in the trial of 94 people accused of plotting to overthrow the UAE government have raised new questions about both press freedom and the role of political Islam.

United Arab Emirates

The Mideast in Venice

Nine Middle Eastern countries are represented at the Venice Biennale, including a piece aptly called "Resistance" from a Turkish artist.

United Arab Emirates

People stand outside the federal supreme court, where the verdict for five political activists was read out, in Abu Dhabi November 27, 2011. The activists convicted on Sunday of insulting the leaders of the United Arab Emirates were sentenced to between two and three years in jail. REUTERS/Nikhil Monteiro (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: CRIME LAW POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR2UJ0C

Emirati Sent to Jail Over 'False Tweets'

UAE media law allows wide latitude for crackdown on critical reporting.

United Arab Emirates

Israeli Air Force F-16 war planes fly in formation over the Mediterranean Sea as part of celebrations for Israel's Independence Day, marking the 65th anniversary of the creation of the state, April 16, 2013. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: TRANSPORT MILITARY ANNIVERSARY) - RTXYO3U

US Arms Sales All About Iran

The novelty of the latest US arms sales to Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates was not their scale or content, but the sign of a US realignment of allies to deter Iran, explains Jean-Loup Samaan.

An illustration picture shows the log-on icon for the Website Twitter on an Ipad in Bordeaux, Southwestern France, January 30, 2013. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau (FRANCE - Tags: SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS) - RTR3D6NN

UAE Arrests Activist For 'False News' Tweets

An Emirati activist arrested and charged with "spreading false news" on Twitter is yet another sign of dwindling free speech in the United Arab Emirates, writes Matt Duffy.

United Arab Emirates

People walk past a court in AL-Ain January 10, 2010. Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, a member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family, was found innocent on Sunday of the torture and rape of an Afghan in a case that embarrassed the Gulf Arab emirate and raised questions over human rights. The judge reading the verdict at the court in the United Arab Emirates, the world's third largest oil exporter and a key U.S. ally, did not give a reason why Sheikh Issa was exonerated of responsibility for abuse shown in a video fi

UAE Bars Foreign Journalists From Trial

The UAE has barred foreign journalists from covering the sedition trial of 94 Emiratis accused of sedition, writes Matt Duffy.

United Arab Emirates

A Lebanese policeman stands guard, as Lebanese Shi'ites, who said they were forced to leave United Arab Emirates last year because of purported security reasons, hold banners during a protest to demand for their rights, in front of the UAE embassy in Beirut May 5, 2010. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS SOCIETY EMPLOYMENT BUSINESS) - RTR2DHH4

UAE Deports 125 Lebanese Citizens

The UAE recently deported some 125 Lebanese citizens, as Lebanese Shiites also face harassment in Libya, reports an Al-Monitor Lebanon Pulse contributor.

United Arab Emirates

Dignitaries pose for a group photo prior to the start of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit at Sakhir Palace in Sakhir south of Manama, Bahrain, December 24, 2012. (From L-R) Bahrain's Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, Emirates' Vice President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maqtoom, Deputy Premier of Omani Cabinet Affairs Fahd Bin Humoud Al Saieed, Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah al Ahmed, King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa, Saudi Crown Prince Salman al Saud, Qatari Crown Prince S

US Budget Woes Compound Differences with GCC

Despite security and commercial ties with the United States, there is a growing trust deficit between Washington and Arab states on the Persian Gulf that fear the spread of Arab democratic movements and worry that the U.S. will sacrifice their interests for a deal with Iran.

Lebanese Shi'ites, who said they were forced to leave United Arab Emirates last year because of purported security reasons, hold banners during a protest to demand for their rights, in front of the UAE embassy in Beirut May 5, 2010. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS SOCIETY EMPLOYMENT BUSINESS)

Lebanese Living in UAE Fear Deportation

Due to alleged security concerns, the United Arab Emirates has adopted a policy of deporting many of the nation’s Lebanese expatriates, causing both economic and emotional hardship, writes Nasser Chararah.

United Arab Emirates