Since the outbreak of the Iran War on February 28th, the airstrikes from Iran have brought significant losses to the Gulf countries. Anwar Gargesh, advisor to the President of the United Arab Emirates, called on Iran to compensate for the damages on Sunday (March 29th).
Gargesh stated on the social media platform X that “any political solution aimed at addressing Iran’s aggression against the Gulf Arab countries must include clear non-aggression measures to prevent (Iran) from launching attacks again in the future; at the same time, the solution should establish principles of accountability, requiring Iran to compensate for its attacks on civilians and critical civilian infrastructure.”
The presidential advisor also mentioned that Iran “misled” its neighboring countries before the outbreak of the war, and its aggression appeared deliberate. He described the Iranian regime as the “primary threat to the security of the Gulf Arab countries.”
Gargesh made this statement as foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, and Pakistan held talks in Islamabad, focusing on how to ease the situation in the Gulf region and end the Iran War.
Since the outbreak of the war, the relationship between the UAE and Iran has deteriorated. UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan even referred to Iran as the “enemy.”
A few days ago, Gargesh posted on X platform that the recent series of attacks by Iran has positioned Tehran as a “core threat axis” in Gulf strategic thinking.
He stated that the attacks over the past four weeks will prompt the UAE to strengthen its defense capabilities and deepen its security relations with the United States, “this is the price paid for Iran’s miscalculation.”
Gargesh had previously stated that the war has shifted the UAE’s focus from just ceasefire negotiations to constructing a longer-term Gulf security framework to counter Iran’s threats from drones, missiles, and nuclear programs.
Following the outbreak of the Iran War, the UAE has been one of the most severely hit Gulf countries by Iran’s drone and missile attacks. The UAE announced on Sunday (March 29th) on the X social media platform that its air defense forces intercepted 16 Iranian ballistic missiles and 42 drones in an attack.
The UAE Ministry of Defense stated that since Iran’s blatant attacks, the UAE air defense forces have intercepted 414 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and 1914 drones.
These attacks resulted in the deaths of two UAE military personnel on duty, a Moroccan civilian employed by the UAE armed forces, and eight individuals of Pakistani, Nepalese, Bangladeshi, Palestinian, and Indian nationalities.
The Ministry of Defense also reported that the Iranian attacks caused 178 injuries of varying severity. The ministry reiterated that the UAE is fully prepared to respond to any threats and will decisively counter any attempts to undermine national security to ensure sovereignty, safety, stability, and safeguard national interests and capabilities.
Previously, all Gulf countries had stated that they were not involved in the US and Israeli attacks on Iran, but Iran has been launching missiles and drones at these countries, claiming their targets are American interests and assets in the region. However, these countries stated that Iran’s attacks also targeted hotels, ports, airports, and residential buildings.