ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Saudi Arabia on Tuesday warned that the UAE’s backing of a separatist offensive in southern Yemen poses a serious threat to Saudi and regional security, calling the moves “extremely dangerous,” hours after Riyadh-led coalition strikes hit Emirati-backed forces.
In a statement, the Saudi foreign ministry said Abu Dhabi’s actions threaten the kingdom’s national security and Yemen’s stability.
The UAE's actions in Yemen "constitute a threat to the Kingdom's national security, as well as to security and stability in the Republic of Yemen and the region," read a statement by the foreign ministry.
It detailed that "the steps taken by the sisterly state of the United Arab Emirates are extremely dangerous."
The warning followed Yemen’s internationally recognized government declaring a state of emergency. “The Joint Defense Agreement with the United Arab Emirates is hereby cancelled,” Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council said in a statement.
It also cancelled a joint defense agreement with the UAE after UAE-backed separatists seized large areas in the south, imposing a 90-day state of emergency, including a 72-hour air, sea, and land blockade.
The UAE joined the Saudi-led coalition in 2015 to fight the Iran-aligned Houthis, who captured Sanaa a year earlier. Although Abu Dhabi scaled back its military presence in 2019, it has retained influence through local allies, notably the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which seeks an independent southern state.
Despite Saudi-brokered power-sharing deals and the STC’s inclusion in the leadership council in 2022, clashes and tensions have persisted over territory, ports, and resources.
Yemeni officials warn the latest escalation could further destabilize the country and undermine efforts toward a political settlement.