- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
- Messages
- 16,320
- Points
- 113
Emirati presidential adviser Anwar Gargash says ‘more channels will open’ between Israel and Arab countries it doesn’t have ties with, in the wake of incessant Iranian strikes
Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash attends the World Government Summit at the Dubai Expo 2020, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 29, 2022 (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
A top adviser to the United Arab Emirates’ president said on Tuesday that Iran’s attacks on Gulf states are pushing them closer to Israel and to the US.
“Iran’s full-throttle attack on the Gulf states will actually strengthen the Israeli role in the Gulf, will not diminish it,” Anwar Gargash said during a Council on Foreign Relations event.
“For countries that have relations with Israel, this is — you know, this relationship, in my opinion, will be even more strengthened,” he continued. “For countries that don’t have, I expect… that more channels will be open.”
Israel normalized relations with the UAE and Bahrain, another Gulf country, in 2020.
Since the US and Israel opened their aerial campaign against Iran on February 28, Tehran has attacked airports, ports, oil facilities and commercial hubs in the six Gulf states with missiles and drones while also attacking Israel and disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — the artery carrying about a fifth of global oil and underpinning Gulf economies.
The attacks have reinforced Gulf fears that leaving Iran with any significant offensive weaponry or arms manufacturing capacity could embolden it to hold the region’s energy lifeline hostage whenever tensions rise.
However, they have not joined any attacks themselves, as Gulf leaders remain deeply fearful of triggering a broader, uncontrollable conflagration.
Gargash said at Tuesday’s online event that his country could join an international effort led by the US to ensure the safety and security of the Strait of Hormuz.
