Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi's break with Iran became an economic one on 18 August, when the United Arab Emirates halted trade, commercial exchange and financial transactions. The decision removed a channel through which Iranian goods and payments had long moved via the emirate.

On 12 September, Iran's president met Abu Dhabi's crown prince in Delhi for their first known meeting since the war began. Neither side announced a reversal of the trade halt, and the Emirati account named neither the nuclear file nor the war. For Abu Dhabi, contact without restored commerce keeps a diplomatic line open while preserving the break in its economic relationship with Tehran.

On 14 July, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency advised carriers to avoid the airspace of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. By 20 July, thirteen foreign airlines had extended UAE flight suspensions through October, signalling that they expected disruption to outlast the summer.

Abu Dhabi's own carrier followed a narrower approach. Etihad continued most services from Zayed International Airport on 20 July, cancelling only Kuwait and Bahrain routes. When Kuwait Airport closed on 18 July after missile and drone attacks, Etihad cut Kuwait flights alongside other Gulf airlines. That destination-by-destination response preserved Abu Dhabi's connectivity where its carrier judged operations possible.