The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is developing alternative transportation and trade corridors to ensure uninterrupted fuel exports following the Iran war.

UAE Presidential Adviser Anwar Gargash said the country is working to expand port capacity along its eastern coast, while also developing pipelines, railways and alternative trade routes.

Speaking at a forum in Abu Dhabi, Gargash said the initiatives were being taken to reduce risks to energy supplies and exports by learning from the experience of recent conflicts.

Gargash said it may be possible to restore a functional relationship with Iran, but rebuilding trust with the Gulf countries could take much longer. He said the mistrust created by attacks on Gulf states in recent months could take decades to overcome.

“A functional relationship with Iran can be restored, and it must be restored,” he said. “But rebuilding lost trust among neighbours is an entirely different matter.”

Gargash said the UAE suspended all economic transactions with Iran last August.

He also criticised the collective response of the Gulf countries to Iran’s attacks against them.

According to Gargash, Gulf countries had broadly shared an understanding of the nature of the challenges posed by Iran for many years. The problem was not a lack of understanding of the situation, he said, but rather the failure to translate that shared understanding into sufficiently coordinated and strategic action.

Gargash said the Gulf countries would need a more coordinated and long-term strategy in the future to ensure regional security and uninterrupted energy supplies.

Source: Al Jazeera