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Iranian drone and missile attacks on Gulf states are completely unjustified and Tehran must prevent further escalation in the regional war, the EU’s representative to the Gulf told The National.
Gulf states have been fending off daily Iranian attacks since the start of the conflict on February 28, when the US and Israel carried out strikes on Iran. Attacks by Iran on its neighbours, including the UAE, are "not justifiable – it is unacceptable and is totally not linked to the military operations in Iran", Luigi Di Maio said.
Speaking during a visit to Abu Dhabi, Mr Di Maio called on Tehran to end its attacks. “The more they continue these attacks, the more they continue this escalation, the more the risk of a further escalation,” he added.
“Iranian attacks are totally unjustified and are hitting civilian infrastructure. It's not true that these attacks are hitting only military bases,” Mr Di Maio said in response to Tehran’s claims that its attacks are focused on US bases in the region.
He stressed the EU’s support for the right of Gulf countries to defend themselves. The UAE has said it does not seek a military confrontation with Iran, stressing its commitment to diplomacy and regional stability. Officials have said the country’s position remains grounded in restraint, with any action taken strictly within the framework of self-defence.
Mr Di Maio’s trip to the Gulf is aimed not only at showing solidarity but also "showing concrete support to our friends" in the region. He arrived in the UAE from Saudi Arabia and was set to travel on to Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.
He also sought to “thank our friends in the Gulf, in particular the government of the UAE, for taking care of the European Union citizens who are still here". He added that the decision of Europeans to remain in the UAE showed the strong level of trust in the country's authorities.
The UAE has borne the brunt of Iranian attacks, with its air defence systems having engaged more than 340 ballistic missiles and more than 1,740 drones since the start of the conflict. Two members of the UAE armed forces have been martyred and six civilians have been killed since Iran began its attacks, while more than 160 have been injured. Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have also confronted Iranian strikes.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar, among the world’s largest energy exporters, have faced disruption to operations at major energy infrastructure as a result of the war. Key sites including Qatar’s Ras Laffan export facility, Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura refinery and the UAE’s Habshan plant have been the targets of Iranian attacks.
The EU has called for an end to the conflict, pushing for diplomacy to avert a global crisis. The bloc's 27 foreign ministers gathered in Brussels this week and overwhelmingly pushed back against calls by US President Donald Trump to send frigates to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for the global oil trade that has effectively been shut by Iran.
Securing corridors
European powers are reluctant to get involved in a wider conflict, but they are increasingly worried about the effect on energy costs, especially as Iran has sharply reduced the number of ships passing through the strait. “It’s clear that it’s becoming a global crisis,” Mr Di Maio said.
The war has not only disrupted the flow of oil from the Middle East, but it has also affected the supply of fertilisers and other products to global markets, raising oil prices. “If you look at the impact on the humanitarian side of the loss or the shortage of fossil fuels from the Gulf, you understand that this might become more and more a humanitarian crisis in some areas of the world," he added.
Mr Di Maio said his visit would also provide an opportunity to explain to Gulf officials the idea of replicating the Black Sea Grain Initiative to establish a corridor for trade in the region. The deal provided safe shipping corridors in the Black Sea and allowed about 33 million tonnes of grain and other food items to be exported from Ukraine as it fought against Russia, easing food security concerns.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has spoken to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres about the idea to unblock the strait in a similar way similar to the Black Sea initiative.
Washington has called on allies to help secure the strait. Mr Trump said most Nato allies told the US they did not want to get involved in the war, then claimed his country did not need their help anyway. Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to UAE President Sheikh Mohamed, said his country could work alongside other nations to ensure security in the strait.
The UAE and signatories from more than 20 other countries have called for Iran to immediately stop attacks on vessels. “It’s very important, first of all, to listen to our friends in the Gulf in order to understand the needs," Mr Di Maio said, when asked if there was potential to expand the EU's Red Sea naval force to the strait. Operation Aspides was launched in 2024 to protect ships from attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels.
"The freedom of navigation is a common good, at world level, of the international community," Mr Di Maio added.
France has sent two more warships to reinforce Aspides. The Greece-based mission currently has three ships from Italy, Greece and France. “We are not going to enter the war and we want to keep this posture, even for helping our friends in the region more and more," Mr Di Maio said. “There is a very proactive approach of the EU member states. It's because we are strategic partners.”
France, Greece, Italy and Spain have sent frigates to Cyprus. Athens also flew in four F-16s to help to defend the island, while France rerouted its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier from the North Atlantic to the Eastern Mediterranean. Italy and France have also helped to further boost air defence operations in the Gulf.
Common fight
Ukraine has sent experts to the Gulf to share knowledge on how to combat Iranian drones, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The Shahed drones used by Iran are the same type that Tehran sold to Russia in 2022 to use in its war on Ukraine.
"We welcome any kind of co-operation between our Ukrainian allies and our GCC allies," Mr Di Maio said. "The rulers in the region, they were right in engaging with, and they are right in engaging with Ukraine."
He added that "we are facing a common challenge", because Gulf states are being attacked with the "same drones hitting Ukrainian soil and even the soil of some member states of the European Union".
European states are broadly hostile towards Iran, after playing a mediator role in the 2015 deal on Tehran's nuclear programme, from which the US withdrew three years later. The bloc has since increased sanctions on Iran and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Mr Di Maio said the international community should commend "the strategic patience of the GCC countries, despite the provocations" they face. The UAE has strongly condemned Iran's attacks and took diplomatic action by closing its embassy in Tehran.
Mr Di Maio said that, despite the crisis, the Gulf would "always be very instrumental and crucial for any kind of dialogue, even for the security architecture of the region".
