Iran is trying to give the world economy a ‘heart attack,’ says a UAE official
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Iran is trying to give the world economy a “heart attack” with its closure of the Strait of Hormuz, United Arab Emirates official Lana Nusseibeh told Fox News on Wednesday.
The closure of the vital energy route disrupted the flow of gas and oil around the world in a war Nusseibeh said his country did not ask for. The UAE has continued to face Iranian missile and drone attacks as part of Iran’s regional retaliation.
“What happens in the Gulf obviously does not stay in the Gulf,” said Nusseibeh, who is his country’s minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in “Special Report.”
“Iran’s attack on the Gulf allies of the United States and Jordan is an attack on the whole world,” he continued.
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“We have always tried a channel of communication with Iran,” he said. “We’ve tried it for decades.”
The minister said he traveled to Tehran in early February to hold talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in what were reported to be “useful and constructive discussions.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, is awaiting the arrival of his Qatari counterpart ahead of their meeting in Tehran on August 26, 2024. (Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)
An Emirati embassy official said the United States’ concerns about Iran’s nuclear program, missiles and support for non-terrorist actors in the region were “well understood” by Dubai, but Iran took an “irresponsible decision.”
“Instead of discussing those issues, they chose to fire more than 2,200 missiles and drones at the United Arab Emirates,” he said.
“89 percent of what they want is infrastructure for people in my country,” said Nusseibeh. “This has to stop.”
The chart shows Iranian ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones launched in the UAE between Feb. 28 and March 24, according to the Institute for the Study of War and AEI’s Critical Threats project. (Good luck ISW)
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“The question is, ‘Why?'” Nusseibeh continued. “The answer is because we are a threat to Iran.”
The UAE was one of the first members to sign the Abraham Accords, an agreement signed during the first Trump administration that pursues normal relations and relations between Israel and its neighbors.
Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Rashid Al Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Donald Trump and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Abraham Accords signing ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on September 15, 2020, in Washington, DC (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“We are open, we are progressive, we are patient, we are a living economy,” he said. “And what did their people do with the resources they have?”
Fox News senior political analyst Bret Baier also asked Nusseibeh his opinion on the timeline for the war and the possibility of the UAE becoming involved in an offensive manner.
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday that “negotiations continue” between the United States and Iran, despite reports of Iran’s rejection of the US peace proposal and the subsequent US-Israeli rejection of Tehran’s counter proposal.
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Emirati Amb. in the US Yousef Al Otaiba warned that “a simple suspension is not enough” in an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been pressuring President Donald Trump to continue the war in Iran until the regime is overthrown, Fox News previously reported.
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“The UAE has always been chaotic,” Nusseibeh said. “But we need to use diplomacy where Iran understands that its behavior as a rogue actor is unacceptable.”
“The light at the end of the tunnel is in Iran’s hands,” he said earlier in the interview.
