Emirati Dubai-based billionaire, Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, castigated the U.S. President Donald Trump earlier today as the UAE faces a sustained barrage of missiles and UAV strikes from the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Habtoor’s public rejection of Trump came as the Emirates is reportedly considering freezing Iranian assets in the state, as the impact of the war deepens across energy and capital markets.
Writing on X in Arabic, Al Habtoor questioned the decision to take “our region” into war with Iran, specifying the “basis” of the decision, across the Middle East.
Al Habtoor went on to question Trump’s earlier policy decisions, such as the Board of Peace, comparing the policy as having “no ink” left to dry on.
The rebuke is significant given Al Habtoor’s position inside the UAE as a leading national, who previously supported the U.S. president on numerous financial dealings.
Both the U.S. and UAE have prioritised business ventures, with UAE royals signing multi-billion dollar deals on real estate, crypto, and AI chips with the U.S. president during his second term.
Historic Relationship
Al Habtoor and Trump have a long history of contention and rapprochement across business dealings.
The Emirati tycoon is a former Dubai-based business partner of Trump’s. Habtoor Leighton Group was part of a joint venture awarded a AED 2.9B ($790M) construction contract for the proposed Trump International Hotel and Tower on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah in 2008. Later in 2011, the project was shelved following the global financial crisis.
Yet in 2015, Habtoor stopped working with Trump citing political differences on Trump’s stance on Muslims ahead of the U.S. election before backtracking, granting him his endorsement on Trump’s ‘business acumen.’
Al Habtoor wrote a op-ed: “Why I’m backing The Donald’s bid to be president,” praising him as a “fearless doer,” published in The National.
“He is a strategist with a shrewd business mind and he has triumphantly rebounded from setbacks time and time again to emerge triumphant. He comes with economic know-how and strong relationships with world leaders and economic giants. Mr Trump is a man who wants America to be great again,” said the Emirati tycoon.
Business Dealings on Ice
Al Habtoor’s official tweet is no accident.
His public frustration can be perceived as a resounding rejection of Trump’s commitment to end those “forever wars”: a line the president pushed in Riyadh during his GCC tour in May, 2025.
The UAE has pushed for closer bilateral ties with the U.S. since Trump’s first term. The Emirates remains America’s top export market by trade volume and inbound FDI flows across the Middle East: the UAE committed to a 10 year, $1.4T investment framework with the U.S., focusing on AI, renewable energy, and advanced manufacturing in 2025.
For Al-Habtoor and GCC business tycoons, the war threatens to alter UAE leading business ventures at home, across the GCC, and with UAE partners in the White House.
Yet any long-term trends will remain unclear until after the war as the Gulf enters its sixth day of war.
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