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United Arab Emirates

August 25, 2026

Abu Dhabi 2:10 pm

41°C

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

UAE passport.

UAE passport ranks among world's 'most powerful,' Iraq, Syria at bottom of list

The 2023 Henley Passport Index features the world’s most powerful passports based on the number of destinations passport holders can access visa-free.

United Arab Emirates

UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (R) greeting Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkey, UAE ink $50 billion in trade deals during Erdogan visit

The $50 billion worth trade deals come as the Turkish government is struggling to draw foreign funds to ease its currency crisis.

United Arab Emirates

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida prepares before a roundtable meeting during the 29th EU-Japan Summit at the European Union building, Brussels, Belgium, July 13, 2023.

Analysis

On Gulf tour, Japan's PM secures energy ties as China’s influence grows

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s three-day trip that began Sunday to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar — its key energy suppliers — is seen as a crucial move to secure Japan’s energy future.

By Salim A. Essaid

A car drives past a road signal indicating the Allenby (King Hussein) bridge crossing point to Jordan.

Work on Israel-Saudi land bridge has begun, Israeli Foreign Ministry confirms

The project will facilitate the transfer of goods in trucks intially between the UAE, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during the UAE - Japan Business Forum in Abu Dhabi on July 17, 2023. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Japan’s PM visits UAE after Saudi Arabia, talks green energy, supply sources

Japan is trying to move away from fossil fuels toward greener energy, which it plans to promote in the region during Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to the Gulf this week.

Dubai's Stock Market Exchange is pictured on a skyscraper.

UAE suspends Emirates Gold over money laundering allegations

The London Bullion Market Association, which regulates the United Kingdom capital’s metals market, suspended Emirates Gold DMCC’s affiliate membership after conducting a review.

United Arab Emirates

AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images

UAE, after Kuwait, releases Iranian prisoners

The moves come as Iran works to restore its ties with Gulf countries following years of estrangement and tension.

United Arab Emirates

Dubai's Stock Market Exchange is pictured on a skyscraper.

UAE becomes observer in Asian money laundering group

The move follows the UAE being added to a financial watchdog’s list of countries with deficiencies in countering money laundering.

Shopkeepers fix the price tags of rice at a market in Karachi on Jan. 6, 2023.

Pakistan thanks 'brotherly' Saudis for $2 billion ahead of IMF bailout decision

Pakistan received Saudi Arabia's $2 billion deposit a day before the International Monetary Fund is expected to approve a $3 billion bailout on Wednesday that the country desperately needs.

Dubai crypto authority suspends BitOasis

The cryptocurrency platform BitOasis' license was suspended by Dubai's VARA due to noncompliance of licensing requirements.

United Arab Emirates

Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

UAE sees higher Chinese car sales as China faces decline at home

China relied on overseas markets to maintain 56% of its vehicle sales in June, and the Middle East is a hot spot.

United Arab Emirates

This photo illustration created in Washington, DC, on July 6, 2023, shows an image of Elon Musk reflected in the opening page of Threads, an Instagram app. Twitter threatened to sue Meta just hours after the Instagram parent company launched Threads, an app it hopes will beat out the struggling site owned by Elon Musk. In a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, published by online news outlet Semafor on July 6, 2023, Musk lawyer Alex Spiro accused the company of "unlawful misappropriation of Twitter's trade s

Arab users flock to Meta's Threads as it takes on Twitter

Threads has seen a variety of new users from the Middle East since its launch Wednesday including influencers and even heads of state.