As the Israel-Iran conflict is spiralling across the geopolitical latitude of West Asia, Tehran has hit the United Arab Emirates(UAE). Iran has targeted many civilian spaces of the UAE. In this backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to the President of the United Arab Emirates(UAE) Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. PM Modi expressed condolences for the loss of lives as an impact of the Iranian strikes and he also severely condemned the strikes.
PM Modi in a call with the UAE President expressed solidarity with the administration and the people. He later reiterated for regional peace and stability. Taking to the X social media platform, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted the conflict situation in West Asia as “difficult times”. Most importantly, PM Modi also thanked the President of UAE Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for ensuring the safety and well-being of the Indian community in the country. “Spoke with the President of the UAE, my brother Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Strongly condemned the attacks on the UAE and condoled the loss of lives in these attacks. India stands in solidarity with the UAE in these difficult times”, wrote PM Modi.
Spoke with President of the UAE, my brother Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Strongly condemned the attacks on the UAE and condoled the loss of lives in these attacks. India stands in solidarity with the UAE in these difficult times.
Thanked him for taking care of the Indian…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 1, 2026
The Prime Minister thus re-emphasized for de-escalation of the conflict, regional peace, stability and security. Meanwhile, vowing to escalation of strikes by Iran, the United Arab Emirates(UAE) has closed its Embassy in Tehran and has also summoned Iran’s Envoy to Abu Dhabi to stage a formal protest against Tehran’s attack on the country. Iran apparently has launched hundreds of drones and missiles targeting Dubai and Abu Dhabi. As an impact thick black smoke is emanating from an industrial zone in Dubai. Also, the air spaces have been shut, the airports are locked and the civilian spaces in Dubai and Abu Dhabi has been completely disrupted.
UAE on the other hand largely successfully intercepted and neutralised the intruding drones and missiles from Iran. As per the latest report, UAE Air Defence Forces have intercepted 20 ballistic missiles from Iran and two cruise missiles. The UAE has also downed more than 300 drones . Despite massive defence, nearly 20 drones intruded into the civilian spaces of the UAE. Also, people at several residential locations of Dubai and Abu Dhabi assert that they heard loud blasts and explosions.
India-UAE strategic relations
In the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s outreach to the President of the UAE, the solid strategic partnership shared between New Delhi and Abu Dhabi comes to the spotlight. Both countries hold comprehensive strategic partnership encompassing the areas of defence, trade, energy imports and cultural cooperation, where Indian diaspora in the UAE is one among the strongest in the globe. UAE is one of the vital stakeholders in India’s West Asian calculus.
In the financial year 2024-25, India-UAE bilateral trade has crossed the benchmark of USD 100 billion. Both nations also have an ambitious target of reaching USD 200 billion trade by 2030 as the country has emerged as the third largest trading partner for India. The UAE is also the key energy partner for India. The recent short yet extremely strategically vital visit of the UAE President to India, reflected the utmost importance given by both the nations for stronger bilateral relations.
In January 2026, President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan landed in New Delhi for mere three hours. The short yet urgent and vital visit mirrors the deep strategic importance aligned between New Delhi and Abu Dhabi and also the personal bonding shared between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the President of UAE. The latest outreach by PM Modi to his UAE counterpart on the backdrop of Iran strikes reflects the concerns of India over the security of a solid bilateral partner along with larger regional peace, security and stability. Earlier in the day, PM Modi also spoke to Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over a phone call and expressed concerns over civilian safety and the need for cessation of hostilities.
