After OPEC, UAE considers leaving GCC, Arab League

The UAE’s exit from OPEC is the most visible sign yet of a deeper strategic realignment underway in Abu Dhabi.

Apr. 29, 2026

The United Arab Emirates is reviewing its role and contributions across multilateral organizations but is not considering any further withdrawals at this time, a UAE official told Reuters on Wednesday, a day after Abu Dhabi announced its exit from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the OPEC+ alliance, effective May 1.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the UAE is broadly reviewing the utility of its memberships in multilateral bodies.

The statement comes amid intense speculation that Abu Dhabi could exit other regional frameworks, including the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), following its surprise decision to leave OPEC.

The exit of the UAE, one of OPEC’s largest producers, deepens a rift with neighboring Saudi Arabia, which effectively leads the group.

Once firm allies, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh have developed a simmering rivalry, clashing on issues ranging from oil policy and regional geopolitics to competition for foreign talent and capital.

GCC under fire

The OPEC withdrawal is the most visible sign yet of a deeper restructuring of Abu Dhabi’s alliances, accelerated by the war on Iran and fueled by growing Emirati disillusionment with the GCC’s response to the war.

Senior UAE official Anwar Gargash, speaking at a conference in the UAE on Monday, delivered some of the harshest criticism yet of the Gulf bloc. “It is true that, logistically, the GCC countries supported each other, but politically and militarily, I think their position was the weakest in history,” he said, adding that he “expected such a weak position from the Arab League, and I am not surprised by it, but I have not expected it from the GCC, and I am surprised by it.”

Gargash had earlier signaled that the UAE would scrutinize its regional and international relationships to “determine who can be relied upon,” pairing that review with measures to strengthen the UAE’s economic and financial position. “Strategic autonomy remains the UAE’s enduring choice,” he said.

Deepening ties with Israel

While distancing itself from Arab regional frameworks, Abu Dhabi continues to solidify its ties with the Israeli regime, deepening military, security, and intelligence coordination significantly since the war on Iran began; ties that were formalized through the 2020 normalization agreements.

According to an Axios report released last week, Israel deployed an Iron Dome air defense battery, along with military personnel to operate it, inside the UAE early in the war, marking the first time the system had ever been transferred or operated abroad.

Analysts have described the UAE’s security relationship with Israel as a lever for regional influence and a unique channel to Washington.

The UAE, a major regional business and financial hub and one of Washington’s closest allies in West Asia, has pursued an increasingly overreaching foreign policy since the normalization agreements, entrenching itself in conflicts and power struggles across the region and beyond.

We remind our readers that publication of articles on our site does not mean that we agree with what is written. Our policy is to publish anything which we consider of interest, so as to assist our readers in forming their opinions. Sometimes we even publish articles with which we totally disagree, since we believe it is important for our readers to be informed on as wide a spectrum of views as possible.