Witkoff meets powerful UAE official amid crackdown on Iran

# Why This Story Matters This meeting signals a fundamental restructuring of Middle Eastern economic alignments that will ripple through global energy markets and supply chains. By converting the UAE from Iran's largest trading partner to a sanctions enforcer, the Trump administration is attempting to create a coordinated economic stranglehold on Iran that previous administrations failed to achieve—one that could restrict Iranian oil exports, collapse its currency further, and force Tehran toward either capitulation or escalatory military responses. The shift from the $28 billion trade relationship represents not merely diplomatic friction but the deliberate dismantling of economic interdependence, a tool far more consequential than rhetoric alone. For global markets, this means tighter oil supplies (pushing prices higher), disrupted shipping in one of the world's most critical energy corridors, and a potential acceleration of regional conflicts as Iran's economic desperation and military options narrow.