Illustrative image. (U. S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael R. Holzworth/Released)
Officials in the administration of United States President Donald Trump are encouraging the United Arab Emirates to become more involved in the war on Iran — and even to take control of one of its islands, the British newspaper The Telegraph reported on May 16.
According to the report, the officials, who are close to Trump, had suggested that the UAE occupies Lavan Island — located more than 250 kilometers away from Emirate shores.
The UAE attacked a petrochemical site on Lavan shortly after the ceasefire between the U.S. and the Islamic Republic entered into effect last month. The attack was reportedly coordinated with Israel.
“Go take them!” a senior security official in the U.S. administration told the British newspaper, adding: “It would be UAE boots on the ground instead of U.S.”
After clashing with the U.S. Navy earlier in the month, Iran renewed strikes on the Gulf state, causing both material damage and casualties. Abu Dhabi warned that it could respond.
Reports revealing an Israeli military deployment in the UAE, and the announcement of a secret wartime visit by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Abu Dhabi lead to further increase in tensions, with Tehran issuing several serious threats in response.
Speaking at the BRICS foreign ministers meeting in India’s New Delhi on May 15, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi rejected what he called “baseless claims” by the UAE foreign minister that Iran had attacked the country and was the aggressor.
“The United Arab Emirates played a significant role in supporting and facilitating military aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Gharibabadi said, according to the official Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA).
“The UAE is an aggressor, not a helper of aggressors,” he added.
Responding during the same meeting, UAE Minister of State Khalifa bin Shaheen Almarar said that the UAE retains the right to defend itself against Iran after accusing Tehran of carrying out more than 3,000 missile and drone attacks since the start of the war.
Emirate officials told the Telegraph that the Gulf state received stronger backing from Israel and the U.S. than from its neighbors in the Gulf, which showed very little solidarity.
There is no doubt that the war has driven the UAE closer than ever to Israel and the U.S. With diplomatic efforts to end the war stuck, Abu Dhabi is likely to join in if fighting resumes. That being said, an Emirate attempt to occupy Lavan is highly unlikely to happen, even with full American and Israeli support.
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