UAE warns Iranian control of Strait of Hormuz would set “dangerous precedent”

A senior adviser to the UAE president has warned that any Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz would set a “serious precedent” and risk the waterway being politicised by Tehran.

Anwar Gargash said any alteration to the status of the strait would carry significant consequences for global energy and trade flows, including for Europe, given its strategic importance as a shipping route, Caliber.Az reports, citing Iran International.

According to him, the UAE had concluded that Iran was capable of using “any weapon that it has in its hand”, and Tehran’s nuclear programme had shifted from being the country’s “second or third worry” to its primary concern.

Gargash also warned that another round of fighting between the United States and Iran would “only complicate things”, saying the UAE favoured a political solution but was concerned that any agreement could generate further consequences in the region.

“Finding a diplomatic way forward is important,” he said. “It should not be at the expense of creating further complications in the future.”

He added that the United States had become central to the strategic calculations of Gulf states, describing the relationship with Washington as “a spinal cord” of national defence.

On Europe’s role, Gargash stated that any European initiative regarding the Strait of Hormuz was intended to take effect only after the conflict ends, though he noted that it remained unclear what form such a plan would ultimately take.

He added that the UAE was losing out under OPEC production limits and had been considering for three years whether to leave the group, arguing that the country sees itself approaching “the autumn of the hydrocarbon age” and aims to maximise its production capacity while it still can.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov