Tensions boiled in the Middle East after the Saudi Arabia-led coalition force conducted an airstrike on military vehicles and cargo at the port of Mukalla in the Hadramout Al-Mahra in Yemen. The Saudis claimed that the UAE sent the shipment, and it contained weapons for separatist forces, in violation of UN resolutions. The Saudis alleged that the UAE’s military support to separatist forces in Yemen threatens regional stability.
Why did Saudi forces strike the UAE shipment they claimed was sent for separatists in Yemen?
What triggered Saudi Arabia to carry out the bombing was the United Arab Emirates’s backing of the Yemeni separatist forces, particularly the Southern Transitional Council. The STC extended open support to the UAE’s presence in Yemen.
In early December, the Southern Transitional Council, a separatist group which seeks southern Yemen’s independence again, launched a swift military offensive. The STC captured important areas in the oil-rich Hadramout (also spelt Hadramaut), and then moved into the neighbouring Al-Mahra province.
Interestingly, the STC captured these areas without much fighting as most Saudi-backed government forces and local outfits either withdrew or posed almost no resistance. In a matter of days, the UAE-backed STC took control of major cities, oil fields, export facilities, and ports that used to be under the official Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council government’s control.
This was a historically significant episode, as before 1990, when Yemen united, there was a southern state called the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen. By seizing control of major provinces in the southern Yemen, the STC essentially controls almost all the land that was once officially part of the southern state of Yemen, including the oil-rich areas and key ports.
The STC and UAE pulled off a massive power move to manufacture facts on the ground for a future independent southern Yemen. However, this move did not sit well with Saudi Arabia, which wants Yemen to remain united under one government, of course, a pro-Saudi one.
Consequently, the Saudi forces launched an airstrike on Tuesday targeting the alleged UAE weapons shipment destined for the STC. The Saudi airstrikes marked the first direct attack against UAE-linked assets in a restive Yemen. Saudi Arabia declared the UAE’s actions in Yemen as “extremely dangerous”. Riyadh accused Abu Dhabi of backing the activities of Yemeni separatist groups that could divide Yemen further.
The episode stoked apprehensions that the long-simmering Saudi-UAE rivalry will escalate into open friction.
Saudi Arabia accuses ‘brotherly’ UAE of pressuring STC to conduct military operations in Hadramout and Al-Mahra near Saudi borders
In a statement issued on 30th December, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs echoed the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council’s claim that the UAE sent ships carrying weapons and armoured vehicles from the port of Al-Fujairah to the port of Al-Mukalla, “without obtaining official approvals of the Coalition Joint Forces Command.”
Saudi Arabia called the STC’s takeover of Hadramout and Al-Mahra a “threat to the Kingdom’s national security, and the security and stability of the Republic of Yemen and the region.”
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expresses its disappointment by the actions taken by the brotherly United Arab Emirates, pressuring the Southern Transitional Council’s forces to conduct military operations on the southern borders of the Kingdom in the governorates of Hadramout and Al-Mahara, which is considered a threat to the Kingdom’s national security, and the security and stability of the Republic of Yemen and the region,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.
#Statement | Pursuant to the statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 25/12/2025 corresponding to 5/7/1447 regarding the Kingdom’s concerted efforts, working with the brotherly United Arab Emirates, to end and contain the escalatory steps taken by the Southern… pic.twitter.com/lTyU0gLgpf
— Foreign Ministry(@KSAmofaEN) December 30, 2025
“The steps taken by the UAE are considered highly dangerous, inconsistent with the principles upon which the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen was established, and do not serve the coalition’s purpose of achieving security and stability for Yemen.
In this context, the Kingdom stresses that any threat to its national security is a red line, and the Kingdom will not hesitate to take all necessary steps and measures to confront and neutralize any such threat,” it added.
UAE denies sending weapons to the separatist group in Yemen
After Saudi Arabia remarked that it views the UAE’s arming of the STC as “a red line for its national security”, the UAE’s Foreign Ministry claimed that it is not a part of any regional effort to undermine Saudi Arabia.
The UAE categorically rejected the claims of the Coalition Forces that the UAE is fuelling conflict in Yemen. Abu Dhabi claimed that the shipment attacked by the Saudi forces did not include weapons, adding that the vehicles were not for the use of any Yemeni party but for UAE forces active in Yemen. The UAE also expressed surprise over the Saudi airstrike.
“With regard to the statement issued by the military spokesperson of the Coalition Forces concerning the military operation at the Port of Mukalla, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirms its categorical rejection of claims alleging the fueling of the Yemeni conflict, noting that the referenced statement was issued without consultation with the Coalition member states,” the UAE foreign ministry said.
“The Ministry confirms that the shipment concerned did not include any weapons, and that the vehicles unloaded were not intended for any Yemeni party, but were shipped for use by UAE forces operating in Yemen. The Ministry stresses that the allegations circulating in this regard do not reflect the nature or purpose of the shipment, and underscores that there was high-level coordination regarding these vehicles between the UAE and Saudi Arabia, along with an agreement that the vehicles would not leave the port. Nevertheless, the UAE was surprised by the targeting of the vehicles at the Port of Mukalla,” it added.
UAE announces voluntary troop withdrawal from Yemen: Abu Dhabi prioritising peace, or is it a tactical retreat?
While Yemen’s UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council declared open support to the UAE amidst escalating tensions on Tuesday, the Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the UAE forces, asking them to withdraw all military and fiscal support to separatist Yemeni factions.
After calling for “restraint and wisdom” and disputing Saudi Arabia’s allegations, the UAE suddenly announced that it will withdraw its remaining troops in Yemen. However, it remains unclear if the UAE-backed separatist factions will relinquish control over the territories they recently captured.
The UAE’s fast bend in the face of rising tensions comes across more as a tactical retreat to avoid direct confrontation with a large and powerful former ally, Saudi Arabia, than a complete discontinuation of support for separatist groups in Yemen.
Not to forget, the UAE has significantly reduced its direct military presence in Yemen since 2019, only to shift to proxies like the STC. The UAE has invested in Southern Yemen’s infrastructure, and Abu Dhabi knows that any broader conflict can disrupt its trade and energy projects there. However, the UAE’s announced troop withdrawal does not essentially mean a full disengagement.
The future course of action
On the face of it, the things between the UAE and Saudi Arabia seem to be cooling down, given the former’s announcement of voluntary troop withdrawal from Yemen. However, the rift will not end that easily, and this UAE-Saudi rift may weaken the anti-Houthi front, allowing the Iran-backed outfit, which now controls western Yemen, to consolidate gains.
Furthermore, if the dispute fails to reach a diplomatic resolution, it could lead to an economic fallout, which could bring volatility in the oil markets, given that both Saudi Arabia and the UAE are decision-making players in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Saudi Arabia’s accusation that the UAE is attempting to undermine its security could stir up tensions in the Gulf Cooperation Council relations as well, leading to broader implications. Pakistan, which has been dependent on both KSA and UAE for financial aid and defence partnerships, could face a dilemma if Saudi-UAE friction refuses to ease.
The prolonged civil war in Yemen has killed over 3 lakh people, and the local populace grapples with famine. If a fresh UAE-Saudi conflict, be it directly or via proxies, escalates, the already wounded Yemen will bleed further.
After this episode, it is expected that Yemen will witness a power realignment, with Saudi Arabia trying to consolidate control over the anti-Houthi camp, and pushing for a unified state, while the UAE will intensify indirect influence in southern Yemen. It remains to be seen whether the fragile UN-led peace talks will yield peace, or Yemen’s fragmentation, power tussle and bloodbath will continue.
