{"id":70775,"date":"2026-05-14T10:05:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T10:05:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/70775\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T10:05:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T10:05:10","slug":"israel-says-netanyahu-met-uae-president-during-iran-war-abu-dhabi-denies-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/70775\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel Says Netanyahu Met UAE President During Iran War, Abu Dhabi Denies It"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"netanyahu\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The United Arab Emirates on Wednesday rejected claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s office that he secretly visited the country during the ongoing conflict with Iran<\/a> and held talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.<\/p>\n

The denial came shortly after Netanyahu\u2019s office said the Israeli leader had travelled to the UAE during the war and secured what it described as a \u201chistoric breakthrough\u201d in bilateral relations.<\/p>\n

In a strongly worded statement, the UAE foreign ministry dismissed suggestions that the country was involved in undisclosed or unofficial arrangements with Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cEmirati relations with Israel are public and not based on non-transparent or unofficial arrangements,\u201d the ministry said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny claims regarding unannounced visits or undisclosed arrangements are entirely unfounded unless officially announced by the relevant authorities in the UAE.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statement appeared aimed at distancing Abu Dhabi from reports of behind-the-scenes wartime coordination amid heightened regional tensions.<\/p>\n

Reports Of Wartime Coordination<\/p>\n

Despite the denial, a source familiar with the matter said Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed met in the UAE city of Al-Ain near the Oman border on March 26, with discussions reportedly lasting several hours.<\/p>\n

The same source claimed Mossad chief Dedi Barnea made multiple visits to the UAE during the conflict to coordinate military-related activities between Israel and Emirati officials.<\/p>\n

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported on Barnea\u2019s wartime travel to the Gulf state.<\/p>\n

The UAE has increasingly deepened security and strategic coordination with both the United States and Israel since formalising ties with Israel under the 2020 Abraham Accords.<\/p>\n

Iran War Deepens Regional Security Cooperation<\/p>\n

The Iran conflict has accelerated regional security cooperation between Washington, Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.<\/p>\n

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said this week that Israel deployed Iron Dome missile defence batteries and personnel to the UAE during the war to help defend against Iranian attacks.<\/p>\n

Iran targeted several Gulf states during the conflict, with the UAE reportedly facing heavier strikes than some of its regional neighbours. Iranian attacks allegedly hit civilian infrastructure and energy-related facilities inside the Emirates.<\/p>\n

The war has exposed the Gulf\u2019s vulnerability to disruptions in regional trade and energy flows, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz a critical maritime route for global oil shipments.<\/p>\n

UAE Balances Security And Economic Stability<\/p>\n

Unlike some Gulf countries, the UAE possesses infrastructure that allows part of its oil exports to bypass the Strait of Hormuz through alternative pipeline routes.<\/p>\n

However, analysts say prolonged instability still threatens the UAE\u2019s role as one of the Middle East\u2019s most important financial, business and logistics hubs.<\/p>\n

The UAE has pursued an increasingly assertive foreign policy over the past decade, expanding its influence across the Middle East and Africa while maintaining close strategic ties with Washington.<\/p>\n

Its relationship with Israel is also viewed as an important channel for maintaining influence in Washington and enhancing regional security cooperation.<\/p>\n

The latest controversy highlights the political sensitivity surrounding Gulf-Israel coordination during the Iran conflict, even as regional security ties continue to deepen behind the scenes.<\/p>\n

(with inputs from Reuters)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The United Arab Emirates on Wednesday rejected claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s office that he secretly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":70776,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16469],"tags":[40883,244,34],"class_list":{"0":"post-70775","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-benjamin-netanyahu","8":"tag-bejamin-netanyau","9":"tag-benjamin-netanyahu","10":"tag-iran"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@people\/116572371528241197","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70775\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}