'Ready To Play Our Part': UAE Says It Will Join 'Any US-Led Effort' To Secure Hormuz

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Sunday said that it is willing to join any United States-led effort to secure navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, as tensions with Iran continue to disrupt one of the world’s most critical shipping routes.

In remarks released to the media, Anwar Gargash, Diplomatic Adviser to the UAE President, said the country would support international efforts to keep the waterway open, though it would not act alone as a maritime force.

“We’re not ready to act as a maritime force but we will join any American-led effort, international effort to secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. We are ready to play our part,” he said.

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Gargash stressed the global importance of the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passes.

“For us, the Strait of Hormuz cannot be held hostage by one country… it has to be part and parcel of the settlement of any conflict,” he said, adding that ensuring free passage was vital for global trade and economic stability.

The UAE presidential advisor also warned that Tehran’s strategy could have broader geopolitical consequences. “The Iranian strategy will actually concretise the American role… It will not reduce it. We will also see Israeli influence become more prominent in the Gulf, not less,” he said.

The UAE has so far taken a cautious approach despite rising tensions. Last month, Gargash said on X that while the country had the right to defend itself against Iranian strikes, it was choosing restraint.

“The UAE has the right to defend itself against this imposed terrorist aggression, but it is still prioritising reason and logic, continuing to exercise restraint and seeking a way out for Iran and the region,” he wrote on X.

He added that the UAE had “made sincere efforts until the very last moment” between Washington and Tehran to avoid the conflict.

(With inputs from agencies)