5 Top Points
- The Iran war continues to impact the GCC: the Gulf countries are repeatedly subject to unprovoked drone and missile strikes, most of which has been intercepted by respected national air defences across the GCC.
- GCC diplomacy widens from the EU to the UK and the UN: After the earlier emergency GCCEU session, Gulf foreign ministers held an extraordinary GCC-UK meeting in Riyadh, chaired by Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani and joined by UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.
- Qatar hardens its crisis diplomacy while keeping mediation alive: Doha continued to reject Iran’s justifications for striking the Gulf countries, and coordinated with Egypt, the UK, Germany and Jordan on addressing regional escalation.
- Saudi Arabia combined deterrence with alliance management: Riyadh underscored it would not tolerate continued waves of Iranian attacks, threatening retaliation if the provocation continues.
- Oman maintains its diplomatic and resolution focus: even as Iranian military escalation intensified, Muscat has stayed focus on crisis containment and resolution, facilitating US-Iran backchannels.
‘Round and About the Gulf’
Kingdom of Bahrain
Wednesday, 11 March – Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani used Arab Human Rights Day to condemn Iranian violations and argue that the attacks on Bahrain and other Arab states were a flagrant breach of regional and international law, explicitly linking sovereignty, security and human dignity.
Wednesday, 11 March – Bahrain’s UN Mission in New York sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General concerning the Iranian attacks, part of Manama’s (also as a rotating Security Council member) efforts to move the issue firmly into the UN and international-law arena.
Tuesday-Tuesday, 10-17 March – The Bahrain Defence Force continue in the regular updates of intercepted Iranian waves of hostile attacks, both by drones and missiles. Air defences had intercepted and destroyed over 125 ballistic missiles and over 200 drones since the start of the Iranian attacks.
State of Kuwait
Sunday, 15 March – Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense said the armed forces had detected 14 hostile drones that violated Kuwaiti airspace with a 24 hour period, eight of which were destroyed, with falling debris causing material damage and minor injuries to three armed forces personnel.
Monday, 16 March – Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense said its air defences were repelling hostile missile and drone attacks, underlining that Kuwait remained directly exposed deep into the second week of the war.
Tuesday, 17 March – Kuwait’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Fahad Yusuf Al-Saud Al-Sabah received a phone call with Saudi Interior Minister Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz. The two discussed the latest regional developments and their implications for security and stability.
Sultanate of Oman
Sunday-Monday, 15-16 March – Oman’s role as the trusted diplomatic channel remained central to Gulf crisis management. Qatar publicly thanked Muscat for hosting and facilitating the US–Iran talks, reinforcing the Sultanate’s reputation as the region’s most credible quiet intermediary.
Monday, 16 March – Oman’s Foreign Ministry said it was continuing to facilitate the safe return of Omani citizens, including a group arriving from Iran through coordinated land and air transfers with Omani missions in Tehran and Ankara.
Tuesday-Tuesday, 10-17 March – Muscat stayed aligned with the broader Gulf de-escalation effort while avoiding inflammatory public rhetoric, and maintaining their focus on diplomacy and mediation.
State of Qatar
Wednesday, 11 March – Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani held talks with Germany’s Foreign Minister amid regional tensions, reinforcing Doha’s effort to internationalise the diplomatic response.
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Thursday, 12 March – Saudi Arabia hosted the extraordinary GCC-UK ministers’ meeting on Iran’s attacks against GCC countries, using the session to call on UK solidarity, endorse UNSC Resolution 2817, and frame Gulf security as integral to wider international stability.
Tuesday, 17 March – Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said it had intercepted repeated drone waves in the Eastern Province and destroyed a ballistic missile targeting Al Kharj Governorate.
United Arab Emirates
Monday, 16 March – UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan spoke with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan about regional security, underscoring the need for continued active bilateral coordination in the context of Iranian attacks.
Tuesday-Tuesday 10-17 March – The UAE Ministry of Defense maintain regular updates as its air defences intercept the majority of unprovoked missile and drone attacks coming from Iran. Since the start of the Iranian attacks, interceptions included over 300 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles, and over 1,600 drones.
Tuesday-Tuesday, 10-17 March – Iranian attacks on the UAE continue to add to to energy-market stress, with disruption in the Strait of Hormuz already halving UAE crude output.
EU Corner
Although the previous week’s GCC-EU emergency meeting remained the main formal EuropeanGulf diplomatic milestone, the pattern widened this week beyond the EU, as Saudi Arabia hosted the GCC-UK session, a reminder that European support for Gulf countries is growingly a British priority also. The meeting explicitly linked Gulf airspace, maritime routes, supply chains and energy markets to UK and global security.
EU Special Representative for the Gulf Luigi Di Maio visits Riyadh, in which he met with Saudi Arabia’s Vice Foreign Minister Waleed Elkhereiji and discussed the latest regional developments in the context of the Iran war.
Key Official Visits & Contacts
Thursday, 12 March (Riyadh) – Saudi Arabia hosted the Extraordinary GCC-UK ministers’ meeting on Iran’s attacks against GCC countries. The meeting was chaired from the GCC by Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani (and Chair of the current GCC Ministerial Council session), and from the UKs by Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, with GCC foreign ministers and GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi also in attendance.
Saturday, 15 March (Doha) – Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani received a note verbal from Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi concerning the regional situation following the Iranian aggression against Qatar and the GCC as a whole. The Egyptians stressed the need to reduce tensions and prioritise diplomacy.
Tuesday, 17 March (Doha)- The Qatari Emir met King Abdullah II of Jordan to discuss the latest regional developments and the need for continued coordination in light of the escalating crisis and its implications for regional security and stability.
Monday, 16 March (by phone) – Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan spoke with UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan about the regional escalation, an important sign of continuing GCC security coordination.