Qatar and UAE say Gulf cannot rely on US alone for region's security

In a united front, Qatar and the UAE outlined their vision for the Gulf region's security, saying in separate addresses that countries in the region must now find their own way to deal with Iran and reshape interactions across all areas, as the war continues to have significant consequences.

Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Dr Majed Al Ansari has called on Gulf countries to strengthen their defences, saying they cannot rely on the United States alone for their security.

“We need to realise in the Gulf that having international forces in the region, having a strategic alliance with the US is very important, but is not enough,” Al Ansari told the Hili Forum in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

“Self-sufficiency when it comes to security is the only way forward,” he added. "Yes, we need our partners. Yes, we need our allies. But we cannot depend on them alone for our security.”

Qatar hosts the largest US military base in the Middle East. Tehran insisted that its prolonged attacks in the first phase of the war were directed at US interests, a claim Qatar has vigorously denied all along, insisting that Iran's attacks hit civilian and economic targets on its own territory.

The UAE's presidential diplomatic adviser Anwar Gargash told the forum that the region will need to find ways to rebuild relations with Iran as "geography leaves us no alternative to engagement," and that those relations will need to be judged by actions and not words to rebuild any shattered trust.

"Trust is the mountain we will have to climb," Gargash said.

“We must distinguish clearly between rebuilding a necessary and functional relationship with Iran and rebuilding the trust that has been broken. The first is necessary. The second will be far more difficult," the UAE official added.