The United Arab Emirates has delivered a blunt warning to Iran from the floor of the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi, declaring that it neither expects nor requires protection from any other state to defend its sovereignty. Minister of State Khalifa bin Shaheen Al Marar told the gathering that his country reserved the full range of sovereign, legal, diplomatic and military rights to respond to what he described as terrorist attacks that have already struck the UAE and other states in the region. Nearly three thousand missiles and drones have targeted civilian infrastructure, according to Emirati officials, as the Gulf state seeks to frame the confrontation in terms of a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter and the principles of good neighbourliness.

The UAE’s firm position, articulated on a platform that includes both Russia and China as well as Iran itself, marks a significant departure from the traditional reliance of Gulf monarchies on Western security guarantees. From the perspective of Gulf capitals, the scale and sophistication of the Iranian bombardment — which the UAE says has hit its territory repeatedly — has shifted the calculus toward self-reliance. Mr Al Marar’s insistence that the UAE does not wait for protection from anyone was a deliberate signal to both Tehran and to fellow BRICS members that Abu Dhabi will act unilaterally if diplomatic channels fail.

Iran did not let the accusation pass unanswered. Kazem Gharibabadi, Tehran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, countered during the same session that the UAE was not merely an accomplice to aggression but an aggressor itself. Citing a 1974 United Nations General Assembly resolution, he argued that states which facilitate or provide services to an aggressor bear full responsibility for the consequences. The exchange turned the BRICS forum into an unlikely stage for one of the most direct public confrontations between the two countries, underlining how the conflict between Israel, the United States and Iran has rippled across the region to draw in Gulf states.

Viewed from Tehran, the accusation of facilitation touches on a deeper grievance: that the UAE has allowed its territory to be used as a logistical hub for operations against Iran. Analysts in London note that this line of argument is designed to shift the legal and diplomatic burden onto Abu Dhabi, particularly if Iran seeks to justify further retaliation. For the UAE, the challenge is to sustain its assertion of military capability without being drawn into a wider war that neither side can afford.

The BRICS meeting in New Delhi may not have resolved the bitter exchanges between the two neighbours, but it has exposed the depth of the rift within a grouping that includes both as members. Looking ahead, the UAE’s declaration of self-reliance could reshape the security architecture of the lower Gulf, forcing allies — including the United States — to recalibrate their assumptions about Emirati dependence. Whether Abu Dhabi’s rhetoric translates into independent military action, or remains a bargaining position ahead of a negotiated de-escalation, will determine whether this diplomatic skirmish becomes a prelude to something far more consequential.