As Iranian drones and missiles continue to rain on the Gulf, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) says it is defending its territory while working to prevent the conflict from spreading further across the region.
A small group of journalists briefed by senior Emirati officials on the situation in Abu Dhabi over the weekend. They say the country had been preparing for instability long before the latest escalation.
Dragged into this conflict by the USA and Israel
“We’ve been getting ready. Not expecting war but getting ready for a sort of emergency, such as the one that we are facing today. The UAE is a country that prepares, and we have been preparing now for a long time because of our readout of the situation in the region. We’ve been preparing in terms of food stock, in terms of facilities, and so on,” one of the officials said.
The remarks offer rare insight into how the country anticipated the possibility of a broader regional crisis even as it pursued diplomatic engagement with Tehran.
“We’ve been acting in a very, let’s say, constructive way with Iran, along with other GCC countries,” the official said, but added that they had not expected Iran to attack and “risk its relations” with its neighbours.
The Iranian president publicly apologised to its Arab neighbours who have suffered since but have still continued bombing US targets in the region.