Gulf nations weigh entering Iran war at high-stakes Saudi meet

Gulf leaders gathered in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for a crucial Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) meeting, looking to agree on how to respond to Iranian missile and drone attacks that have hit the region in recent weeks, according to news agency Reuters. The talks take place at a tense moment, with fears of a wider military escalation still hanging over the region despite a fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

The in-person meeting in Jeddah marks the first time Gulf heads of state have come together since their countries were pulled directly into the fallout of the conflict, which began after US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. The strikes on the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman have hit energy infrastructure, military sites and civilian facilities, including assets linked to US operations in the region.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chaired the meeting, according to Saudi state media, with leaders from across the Gulf gathered in Jeddah for talks. The discussions centred on the fast-changing situation in the region and how member states can better coordinate their next steps.

The UAE Foreign Ministry said that Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed participated in the summit on behalf of the UAE President.

A Gulf official, speaking anonymously to news agency Reuters, said the primary aim of the summit was to craft a collective response after thousands of Iranian missile and drone attacks targeted Gulf nations.

While the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran took effect on April 8 and brought a pause in major attacks, the situation remains tense, with uncertainty still hanging over how long the calm will last.

UAE CRITICISM EXPOSES INTERNAL STRAINS

The meeting also comes against the backdrop of visible cracks within the GCC, with the United Arab Emirates openly criticising what it sees as a weak collective response. Senior UAE official Anwar Gargash did not hold back in his assessment.

“It is true that, logistically, the GCC countries supported each other, but politically and militarily, I think their position was the weakest in history,” Gargash said.

“I expected such a weak position from the Arab League, and I am not surprised by it, but I have not expected it from the GCC, and I am surprised by it.”

Complicating things further, the UAE quit OPEC and OPEC+, dealing a heavy blow to the oil exporting groups and their de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, at a time when the Iran war has caused a energy shock and unsettled the global economy.

QATAR WARNS AGAINST PROLONGED STALEMATE

Earlier in the day, Qatar warned against the dangers of a prolonged and unresolved conflict in the region. “We do not want to see a return to hostilities in the region anytime soon, we do not want to see a frozen conflict that ends up being thawed every time there is a political reason,” Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson said.

“Our position has been clear from day 1. Any conflict in the region should be solved on the negotiation table. And we believed in the negotiation process and we were supportive of the negotiation process and we will remain supportive of a diplomatic resolution,” he added.

The urgency of the summit is tied to the scale of recent attacks on Gulf nations. These developments have heightened fears that Gulf states could be drawn more directly into the conflict. Iran has defended its actions, with its foreign minister telling the United Nations Security Council that Tehran would “exercise its right of self-defense”. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has also warned that all Israeli and US military assets across the region are the legitimate targets.

For now, Gulf states are treading carefully. Many of them still depend on the US military presence and long-standing defence ties as a shield against external threats, even as they try to avoid getting pulled deeper into the conflict.

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