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United Arab Emirates

August 24, 2026

Abu Dhabi 9:45 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

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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.

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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.

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

Leon Neal/Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Sudan ramps up Saudi Arabia, Turkey contacts amid growing Red Sea cooperation

Sudanese army soldier stands in front of a tank

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

Etihad Airways provides COVID-19 test with ticket

The Abu Dhabi airline is including a COVID-19 test that can be taken before departure in the ticket price for travelers on outgoing flights.

United Arab Emirates

A picture taken on July 19, 2020, shows a screen broadcasting the launch of the "Hope" Mars probe at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre in Dubai. - The probe is one of three racing to the Red Planet, with Chinese and US rockets also taking advantage of the Earth and Mars being unusually close: a mere hop of 55 million kilometres (34 million miles). "Hope" -- Al-Amal in Arabic -- is expected to start orbiting Mars by February 2021, marking the 50th anniversary of the unification of the UAE. (Photo by Giuse

UAE Mars probe's trajectory now viewable online

The public can now track the Emirate probe Hope as it heads toward Mars, in the United Arab Emirates' first space mission.

United Arab Emirates

Israel's midfielder Dia Saba (R) shoots the ball past Guatemala's goalkeeper Paulo Motta as he scores during the FIFA friendly football match between Israel and Guatemala at Netanya Municipal Stadium in the Israeli coastal city of Netanya on November 15, 2018. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Arab-Israeli soccer star joins Emirati league

Following normalization of ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, the Emirati Al-Nasr soccer club has recruited Arab-Israeli star Dia Saba, who will be the first Israeli to join a Gulf league.

United Arab Emirates

This picture taken on July 17, 2020 shows an Emirates Boeing 777-31H aircraft taxying upon arrival at the Iranian capital Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport. - The UAE's Emirates airlines landed its first flight in Tehran on July 17 after a five month shutdown due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Emirates resumes flights to Muscat

The Dubai-based airline is getting closer to resuming its pre-pandemic network, despite a new virus outbreak in the United Arab Emirates.

United Arab Emirates

US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) and Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif attend a bilateral meeting in Vienna, Austria, May 17, 2016.
/ AFP / POOL / LEONHARD FOEGER (Photo credit should read LEONHARD FOEGER/AFP via Getty Images)

Why rejoining Iran nuclear deal isn’t so easy, even if Biden wins

A new Iran deal should consider the “gold standard” energy pact by the UAE and include a regional dialogue on the peaceful use of nuclear power.

United Arab Emirates

This picture taken on November 17, 2019 shows the Liberia-flagged container ship RDO Concord sailing through Egypt's Suez Canal in the canal's central hub city of Ismailia on the 150th anniversary of the canal's inauguration. - One hundred and fifty years after the Suez Canal opened, the international waterway is hugely significant to the economy of modern-day Egypt, which nationalised it in 1956. The canal, dug in the 19th century using "rudimentary tools" and which links the Mediterranean to the Red Sea,

Will Suez Canal feel impact of UAE-Israel normalization?

The potential economic agreements between the United Arab Emirates and Israel may reduce traffic through Egypt’s Suez Canal.

United Arab Emirates

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - APRIL 01: A medical worker, wearing disposable gloves , measures the temperature of a man at a coronavirus drive-through screening center on April 01, 2020 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has spread to many countries across the world, claiming over 40,000 lives and infecting hundreds of thousands more. (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)

UAE records new high in COVID-19 cases

The United Arab Emirates is trying to simultaneously fight the resurgence of the coronavirus and boost its tourism industry.

United Arab Emirates

Esper, meeting with Gantz, reaffirms commitment to Israel's regional military edge

Israel Defense Minister Benny Gantz and US Defense Secretary Mark Esper expressed confidence the US would maintain Israel's qualitative military edge

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Team Emirates rider wins Tour de France as cycling gains legs in Middle East

The region is warming to investments in sports such as cycling as governments in the region seek to expand their sports diplomacy and soft power.

A bar tendant serves customers at a restaurant in Dubai on August 30, 2018. - As temperature levels soar in Dubai, residents and tourists in the rich Emirate turn to a much favourite indoor outing during summer days: restaurants. From business lunches, to fresh decorations, Dubais top restaurants compete to attract those costumers looking to beat the heat with a customised cool drink, or an award winning plate. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Abu Dhabi scraps liquor license requirement for alcohol purchases

People in the emirate now need only be of age and in a certified drinking area such as a bar to consume alcohol.

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Israeli opposition wants to know: Is there more to UAE deal than meets the eye?

Senior opposition figures suspect that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hiding some of the details of the deal signed with the UAE.

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A F-35 fighter jet is seen after landing in the Israeli Nevatim Air force base in the Negev desert, near the southern city of Beersheva, on December 12, 2016.
The first two US F-35 stealth fighters bought by Israel landed at an air base in the Jewish state this evening, an AFP journalist at the site said. Their arrival, hailed as a gamechanger by Israeli leaders, came some six hours late after aviation officials in Italy delayed the takeoff for the last stage of their journey because of poor visibility

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F-35 deal with UAE could benefit Israeli defense industries

Israel’s leadership is against the United States selling the Emirates F-35 jets, but if the deal comes through, Israeli defense industries could also benefit.

United Arab Emirates