Overview
- The Washington Post reported that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made multiple private calls urging a U.S. attack on Iran last month, a claim the Saudi embassy publicly denied while stressing support for diplomacy.
- Iranian state media and President Trump confirmed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in coordinated U.S.–Israeli strikes, which were followed by widespread Iranian missile and drone attacks across Gulf states.
- Following those attacks, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed and the Saudi crown prince held a call in which Riyadh offered to place all capabilities at the UAE’s disposal, signaling renewed coordination.
- The current turmoil follows a November episode in which Trump told the UAE leader that MBS sought sanctions on the Emirates over Sudan; Saudi officials counter that they requested measures against Sudan’s RSF, not the UAE.
- The United States has not sanctioned the UAE; the Treasury instead imposed penalties on RSF commanders and disclosed that an RSF figure is using an Emirati ID, underscoring the Sudan link to the Gulf rift.