A New Order in the Middle East?
Foreign AffairsNov 29, 2022
The Facts
Following a series of oil tanker seizures by Iranian naval forces in recent weeks, the UAE on Wednesday announced that it has stopped participating in a US-led coalition to protect Gulf shipping.
The UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country effectively withdrew from the coalition two months ago, following an "ongoing evaluation of effective security cooperation."
The Spin
Pro-Iran narrative
The UAE's withdrawal from this US-led maritime coalition is another indication of the region moving away from American hegemony. Longtime allies have become exasperated by Washington's inability to take initiative, and the UAE has finally decided to follow many others in resuming and improving diplomatic relations with Iran.
Anti-Iran narrative
Tehran is currently heading towards its own hegemonic goals in the Middle East relatively unopposed, and it is now time for a new Western hardline strategy against the state. The US must now check Iran's growing confidence, rebuild ties with pro-Western states in the region, and no longer answer Iranian questions with anemic responses.
