United Arab Emirates - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

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United Arab Emirates

April 20, 2026

Abu Dhabi 4:52 pm

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Abdulla Balalaa, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability, United Arab Emirates

Interview

UAE official says opening Hormuz integral to any Iran deal, describes infrastructure damage 'manageable'

Abdulla Balalaa, UAE assistant minister of foreign affairs for energy and sustainability, spoke to Al-Monitor about the situation in the Gulf along with the UAE's focus on promoting privatization in the water sector and the 2026 UN Water Conference.

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi stocks hit 2026 high, bucking global war-driven volatility

The kingdom's stock market climbed to its highest level of the year on Wednesday, with the kingdom’s equities now far outperforming the S&P 500 and other global and regional indices.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

UAE's deputy PM holds first call with Ghalibaf amid push to extend US-Iran ceasefire

The Emirati vice president and Iran’s parliament speaker talked de-escalation on the phone in the first such contact since the Iran war began.

United Arab Emirates

A man walks through the atrium during the 2026 IMF and World Bank Group Spring Meetings in Washington, DC, on April 14, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)

IMF slashes Mideast outlook by nearly 3 points as Iran war hits economies

The International Monetary Fund cut gross domestic product forecasts for the Middle East and North Africa, with the fallout from the conflict exposing stark divergences between the region’s energy exporters and importers.

Latest News

China signals bigger Gulf role as UAE crown prince visits Beijing

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, in Beijing on April 13, 2026.

Oil back above $100 as US moves to blockade Strait of Hormuz

Elke Scholiers/Getty Images

UAE says no more 'niceties' with Iran, seeks clarity on fragile truce terms

TOPSHOT - People watch from a street as a tall smoke plume billows following an explosion in the Fujairah industrial zone on March 3, 2026. Iran's strikes on Gulf neighbours since February 28, following the US-Israeli attack, forced the UAE to shut its airspace, blindsiding travellers who thought they were headed to one of the region's safest holiday destinations. (Photo by Fadel SENNA / AFP via 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

Nurse Practitioner Terri Welch prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, at the Haxby and Wigginton Group Medical Practice in Haxby, northern England on December 22, 2020. - Europe is expected to start a massive vaccination campaign after Christmas following the United States and Britain, which have begun giving jabs with an approved Pfizer-BioNTech shot, one of several leading candidates. (Photo by Lindsey Parnaby / AFP) (Photo by LINDSEY PARNABY/AFP via Getty Images)

Dubai begins administering Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

Saudi Arabia and Israel have also approved the American-German vaccine.

United Arab Emirates

A Hanukkah menorah is seen as Israeli entrepreneurs celebrate the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah for the first time at a hotel in Dubai on December 10, 2020. - Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the holy temple in Jerusalem after the 165 BC Jewish victory over the Hellenistic Seleucid armies of Antiochus IV Epiphanies, who had outlawed Jewish rituals and ordered Jews to worship Greek gods and adopt their customs. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel's Sephardic chief rabbi returns from Emirates

Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel Yitzhak Yosef paid a historic visit this weekend to the United Arab Emirates, inviting several ministers to visit Jerusalem.

United Arab Emirates

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 25: An Emirates A380 prepares for take off at Sydney Airport on March 25, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced further restrictions on Australians as the government works to stop the spread of COVID-19, including a ban on all international travel from Wednesday. There will be exceptions for aid workers and for compassionate, work-related and other essential travel. A new phase of shutdowns for Australian businesses will also come into place from m

Emirates resumes flights to Istanbul

The Dubai-based airline recently reported a massive revenue loss for 2020, but continues to rebuild its flight network toward pre-pandemic status.

United Arab Emirates

A worker inspects bottles of milk on on the producion line at a dairy factory at Baladna farm in the city of al-Khor, 60 kilometers north of the Qatari capital on October 26, 2019. - The cows of Qatar's Baladna farm, housed in climate-controlled farms in the desert, exemplify the lengths to which Qatar has gone to resist what it calls an economic "blockade" enforced by its Saudi-led neighbours. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Gulf economies face major challenges in post-COVID 19 world

Signals indicate the embargo imposed on Qatar could come to an end, but can the Gulf Cooperation Council play a coordinating role vital to diversify Gulf economies post-pandemic?

US treasury secretary to tour Middle East in final push for Abraham Accords

Steven Mnuchin plans to stop in Israel, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Sudan and Qatar.

United Arab Emirates

An F-35 fighter plane flies over the White House on June 12, 2019, in Washington DC. - US President Donald Trump announced while meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda that Poland was ordering more than 30 F-35 combat aircraft. (Photo by Eric BARADAT / AFP) (Photo credit should read ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Senate fails to pass resolution blocking Trump administration’s F-35 sale to the UAE

Major obstacle falls to Trump administration's Gulf security goals.

United Arab Emirates

'Seeds of progress' in ending Gulf row with Qatar, UAE envoy says

UAE Ambassador to the United States Yousef al-Otaiba signaled the Gulf parties are getting closer to an agreement.

United Arab Emirates

(L-R)Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani pose before they participate in the signing of the Abraham Accords where the countries of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recognize Israel, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, September 15, 2020. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates arrived September 15, 2020 at the

Emirati, Israeli officials upbeat about Biden Administration

The director general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Alon Ushpiz, and the UAE’s assistant minister for culture and public diplomacy, Omar Ghobash, discussed the prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace, Iran, and combating bigotry in the region and more at an Al-Monitor event.

United Arab Emirates

Cyberattacks in UAE up 250% during pandemic, Emirati cyber chief says

Emirati cybersecurity chief Mohamed al-Kuwaiti said his country is experiencing a “cyber pandemic.”

United Arab Emirates

Beitar Jerusalem fans cheer on their team prior to the UEFA Europa League play-off football match between Beitar Jerusalem and AS Saint-Etienne, at the Itztadion Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem on August 17, 2016.
Saint-Etienne beat Beitar Jerusalem 2-1. / AFP / AHMAD GHARABLI (Photo credit should read AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Beitar Jerusalem soccer club pursues talks with Emirati investor

Owner of Beitar Jerusalem soccer club Moshe Hogeg is determined to ignore threats by La Familia fan club against partnering with an Emirati investor.

United Arab Emirates

UAE responds to criticism from US senators on F-35 sale

A group of bipartisan senators has introduced legislation rejecting the Trump administration's planned sale of the advanced fighter jet to the United Arab Emirates.

United Arab Emirates

A houbara bustard walks at Al-Marzoom Hunting reserve, 150kms west of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates on February 2, 2016. / AFP / KARIM SAHIB (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Israelis, Emiratis connect over cinema, concern for nature

While trade is a pillar of the nascent ties between Israel and the Emirates, civil groups on both sides are finding plenty of common goals and joint projects to pursue.

United Arab Emirates