Abu Dhabi Crown Prince meets Iranian President amid Hormuz tensions

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan sat down with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12, marking the most significant diplomatic contact between the UAE and Iran since their relationship cratered earlier this year.

The central topic: how to keep ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that happens to be the single most consequential bottleneck in global energy markets.

Why Hormuz matters more than almost any other waterway

The Strait of Hormuz sits between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula, connecting the Persian Gulf to the open ocean. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through it on any given day, along with a massive share of global liquefied natural gas exports.

Earlier in 2026, the broader US-Iran conflict escalated sharply, with Iranian missile and drone attacks affecting UAE infrastructure and disrupting maritime operations in and around the strait.

The backstory: months of rising tension

By June, UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed had publicly stressed the necessity of uninterrupted maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has floated proposals that would involve transit fees for ships passing through the strait, a framework that runs directly counter to established international maritime norms and the US position favoring free navigation.

Follow-up talks between Iran and Gulf states were reportedly scheduled for mid-September in Oman.

What to watch next

The mid-September talks in Oman will be the first real test of whether the New Delhi meeting translates into anything concrete. The core question remains unresolved: can Iran and the Gulf states agree on a framework for Hormuz navigation that satisfies Tehran’s desire for influence over the waterway without undermining the principle of free international passage?

War risk premiums for vessels transiting the Persian Gulf spiked during the early 2026 escalation, and insurers have been cautious about adjusting rates downward without clearer signals that the threat environment has stabilized.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.