Before the Iran war began, U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gulf Arab allies feared the kind of attacks Tehran is currently waging against them and lobbied hard to oppose them. As the war drags on, they fear that if they withdraw too soon, they will be worse off than they were before the war began.
Over the past week, as momentum for negotiations to end the war grew, Gulf Arab officials said publicly that Iranian military power, used to punish the actions of the United States and Israel, would not remain intact in any future regional order. While the nuclear threat is recognized as still present, they view Iranian missiles as a more pressing risk.
Saudi Arabia wants to reduce Tehran’s cruise and ballistic missile capabilities “to the greatest extent possible” before the war ends, a regional official familiar with Saudi Arabia’s position told CNN. Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates considers it “difficult” for the region to continue to coexist with Iran’s missile and drone programs, the official said.
The message of the Iran war has become “very clear,” Anwar Gargash, an adviser to the UAE president, said last week.
“Our thinking goes beyond a ceasefire, but rather to solutions that ensure lasting security in the Gulf,” including in response to Iran’s “nuclear threat, missiles, drones and Strait bullying,” he said.
“It is inconceivable that this invasion will turn into a permanent threat status,” he added in a post on X Sunday.
U.S. officials say they are pursuing similar goals.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said this month that the goal is to “destroy Iran’s offensive missiles, destroy Iran’s missile production, and destroy its naval and other security infrastructure.”
Iranian officials say most of Iran’s firepower has been used against neighboring Arab states, which has troubled regional leaders who insist they are not involved in the war and actively lobby against it. As the war progressed, the Iranian government accused the Gulf Arab states of allowing the United States to use their territory to launch attacks on the Islamic Republic.
Iran’s demands have also changed throughout the war, with Iranian officials saying they are demanding a new status quo in the region, including formalization of Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz, war reparations, and a shift in the decades-old alliance between Gulf Arab states and the United States. It has also threatened to expand attacks on its Arab neighbors.
The New York Times on Tuesday cited American officials as saying Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is urging President Trump to continue the war with Iran, arguing that this is a “historic opportunity” to reshape the Middle East.
However, public messages from Saudi Arabia remain focused on de-escalation.
A senior Saudi official told CNN that Riyadh “continues to support” a peaceful resolution to the conflict, as it did before the war began.
“Our primary concern today is to protect our citizens and civilian infrastructure from daily attacks,” the official said. “We remain in close contact with the Trump administration and our commitment remains.”
Qatar, whose LNG production has completely halted due to the Iranian attack, also insisted that any resolution to the war must take into account the interests of the Arab neighbors attacked by Iran.
“Our country’s role is needed to rewrite the regional security architecture in line with our strategic interests,” Qatari Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Majid Al-Ansari said at a briefing on Tuesday.
Iranian officials say US and Israeli attacks on Iran have killed more than 1,750 people and injured more than 20,000 since they began four weeks ago.
Iran responded by firing thousands of projectiles at cities in neighboring Arab countries, shattering the region’s long-established stability. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) effectively blocked shipping through the critical Strait of Hormuz, depriving Iran’s neighbors of billions of dollars in revenue from energy exports.
Iranian attacks have killed more than 25 people and injured more than 200 across the Gulf, according to figures released by governments. The UAE suffered the heaviest casualties in the Gulf region.
President Trump insists that the United States and Israel have already won the war. He suggested this week that the U.S. could soon begin talks with Iran and possibly Pakistan, even as the U.S. prepares to send more troops to the Middle East in the coming days, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Over the past few years, Gulf Arab states have moved significantly towards improving relations with Iran, but experts say the ferocity of Tehran’s attacks on them has breathed new life into the view that the Islamic Republic remains the most formidable threat. It would be their worst nightmare that the Iranian regime would be left intact after this war, with control of the Strait of Hormuz and an emboldened Revolutionary Guard that could attack energy facilities at will.
“Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have a very particular interest in whether there is an agreement between the United States and Iran,” Abdulaziz Sager, chairman of the Saudi-based Gulf Research Center, told CNN. “We need systemic guarantees that something like this will never happen again.”
Emirati political scientist Abdulkhalek Abdullah said Gulf Arab states were now facing an “ugly” side of Iran run by the Revolutionary Guards.
Iran is now “public enemy number one” for Gulf Arab states, Abdullah said. “It’s not a terrorist state, but it’s run by a terrorist organization.”
“This is an ugly Iran that we are facing and…it is the duty of everyone, not just America, not to surrender and not to let this (Iran) go unpunished.”
CNN’s Sarah Silgany contributed to this report.
