UAE halts Iran trade, financial transactions after missile row: What’s happening in West Asia?

After the alleged missile attack from Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stopped all the trade, commercial and financial transactions with Tehran ‘untill further notice’, the country's foreign ministry announced on Wednesday.  However, Iran has denied any missile attack on Iran. 

The Director of the Strategic Communications Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Afra Al Hameli said that UAE remains firmly committed to safeguarding the integrity of the international financial system, in line with international law and the highest global standards. 

“In light of regional escalations that undermine regional and international peace and security, all trade, commercial exchanges, and financial transactions with Iran have been halted until further notice,” she wrote in a post on X. 

UAE alleges missile attack by Iran

The announcement came after the UAE said two ballistic missiles had been fired towards the country from Iran. Both missiles fell into the sea -- one landed within UAE territorial waters and the other outside them, according to the defence ministry.

The ministry later claimed the missiles were intended to target maritime traffic.

Iran denies missile attack

Iran has denied firing missiles at the UAE, with Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei urging regional countries to refrain from making “baseless accusations”.

Residents in Dubai received a missile threat alert on Tuesday as UAE air defence systems responded to incoming missiles. The UAE Interior Ministry later said the situation was safe.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions following recent Iranian strikes allegedly targeting UAE-linked vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

US halts all negotiations with Iran

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has halted diplomatic engagement with Iran until further notice, the White House said on Tuesday, as Tehran hardens its position over the Strait of Hormuz and presses Washington to meet its demands.

Trump said on Tuesday on Truth Social that no talks with Iran were underway or scheduled, adding that the US naval blockade remained “in full force and effect”.

A White House official later told Semafor that Trump’s post amounted to calling off talks with Tehran “for the foreseeable future”.

The move came as the 60-day period set under the Islamabad memorandum for reaching a final agreement expired. Iranian officials, however, dispute that the negotiating period ever formally began, arguing that Washington failed to fulfil the commitments required for talks to start.