In recent years, Abu Dhabi has emerged as a venue for high-stakes diplomacy, hosting sensitive talks on conflicts ranging from Ukraine-Russia to Armenia-Azerbaijan, as the United Arab Emirates positions itself as a neutral platform amid deepening global divisions.
Analysts say the UAE’s growing mediation role is rooted in a combination of strategic neutrality, high state capacity and an ability to maintain working relations with rival powers simultaneously.
Over the past two decades, Emirati leaders have deliberately pursued a foreign policy that avoids rigid alignment with political blocs, instead framing the country as a global entrepôt open to all sides.
Unlike traditional diplomatic hubs in Europe or Washington, Abu Dhabi operates outside formal military blocs and the Euro-Atlantic political framework, allowing adversaries to engage without appearing to negotiate on an opponent’s turf.
This posture is reinforced by the UAE’s close security partnership with the United States, alongside expanding strategic ties with China and sustained dialogue with Russia.
Neutral platform in a fragmented world
The UAE’s rise as a diplomatic broker reflects broader shifts in the global order. As competition between major powers intensifies, traditional mediation channels have become increasingly politicised, creating space for middle powers with economic strength, diplomatic flexibility and strategic autonomy.
Despite its small population, the UAE has invested heavily in connectivity, security and diplomatic outreach. Abu Dhabi and Dubai serve as key nodes linking Europe, Asia and Africa, while the country maintains close ties with Western partners alongside expanding relations with Russia, China, India and other emerging powers.
The 2020 Abraham Accords, which normalised relations between the UAE and Israel, further strengthened Abu Dhabi’s credentials as a bridge-builder across entrenched divides.
The UAE’s strategic investments in ports, logistics and infrastructure across Africa, South Asia and the Mediterranean have extended this role beyond diplomacy.
These investments deepen economic interdependence, strengthen political ties and embed the UAE within emerging trade corridors, illustrating how middle powers increasingly derive influence by shaping economic ecosystems rather than dominating them.
Against this backdrop, Abu Dhabi is hosting multiple rounds of U.S.-brokered talks between Ukrainian and Russian representatives, including a second round this week.
While expectations for breakthroughs remain low, diplomats say the UAE provides one of the few environments acceptable to all sides for sustaining dialogue.
Emirati officials have pointed to their role in facilitating multiple Russia–Ukraine prisoner exchanges since 2022 as evidence that quiet diplomacy can still deliver practical results, even when broader negotiations stall.
Rather than producing immediate results, analysts say the Abu Dhabi format is serving a different purpose: managing pressure, maintaining communication channels and preventing diplomatic collapse at a time when trust is minimal.
Azerbaijan–Armenia
The UAE’s mediation role extends beyond hosting talks, with Abu Dhabi increasingly positioning itself as a neutral platform for post-conflict diplomacy in the South Caucasus.
On 4 February, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met in Abu Dhabi on the sidelines of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity ceremony.
According to official readouts, the leaders welcomed progress following the Washington Peace Summit hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump and stressed the importance of maintaining momentum in the bilateral normalisation process.
UAE officials framed the engagement as part of a broader strategy of quiet mediation rather than high-profile intervention.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, described the meeting as “a positive step toward lasting peace,” saying Abu Dhabi’s approach prioritises bridge-building, economic cooperation and long-term regional stability.
Beyond formal negotiations, Abu Dhabi, alongside Oman has increasingly functioned as a discreet channel for indirect diplomacy involving Iran and Western powers, particularly when direct engagement is politically sensitive.
Iranian officials have publicly acknowledged the role of “friendly countries” in facilitating dialogue.
“The location and date of negotiations should not be a tool for media games,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Tuesday (3 February), thanking regional partners for helping create conditions for diplomacy.
Dialogue in a divided world
According to analysts, Abu Dhabi is positioning itself as a diplomatic “safe space” for dialogue rather than seeking quick solutions to deeply entrenched conflicts.
In an increasingly fragmented international system, the UAE’s ability to act as a connector rather than a power broker is becoming one of its most valuable assets, and a key reason why Abu Dhabi keeps appearing at the centre of global diplomacy.
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Ukrainian and Russian negotiators began the second round of U.S.-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday (4 February).
The joint awarding of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Abu Dhabi on 4 February underscores a shared commitment to peace and reconciliation, political analyst Fuad Karimli told AnewZ.
Several Armenian defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment on Thursday (5 February) as the Baku Military Court began reading out verdicts in criminal cases under Azerbaijan’s Criminal Code.
Ukrainian and Russian officials wrapped up a "productive" first day of new U.S.-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi, Kyiv's lead negotiator said on Wednesday (4 February).
Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío has denied that Havana and Washington have entered formal negotiations, countering recent assertions by U.S. President Donald Trump, while saying the island is open to dialogue under certain conditions.
Rivers and reservoirs across Spain and Portugal were on the verge of overflowing on Wednesday as a new weather front pounded the Iberian peninsula, compounding damage from last week's Storm Kristin.
Morocco has evacuated more than 100,000 people from four provinces after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several northern regions, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new underground ballistic missile base on Wednesday (4 February), just over a day before the start of mediated nuclear negotiations with the United States, slated for Friday in Oman.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia on Tuesday (3 February) of exploiting a U.S.-backed energy ceasefire to stockpile weapons and launch large-scale drone and missile attacks on Ukraine ahead of peace talks.
A London court has sentenced Russian captain Vladimir Motin to six years in prison for gross negligence over a 2025 ship collision that killed Filipino crew member Mark Pernia, whose body was never found.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivered a stark apology on Thursday, launching a direct attack on former British ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson and admitting he was wrong to trust him.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) say they've detained two vessels in the Persian Gulf carrying more than 1 million litres of smuggled fuel, state media said, with 15 foreign crew members handed to judicial authorities.
An exchange of 314 prisoners of war has been agreed following U.S.-brokered trilateral peace talks in Abu Dhabi between delegations from the United States, Ukraine and Russia, according to U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff.
U.S. President Donald Trump held an “excellent” phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday, (4 February), to discuss trade, energy, Taiwan, Iran, and Russia’s war in Ukraine, ahead of Trump’s planned visit to Beijing in April.
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