Iran FM claims UAE ‘blocked’ BRICS statement due to Abu Dhabi’s ties with Israel

Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claims the United Arab Emirates “blocked” a joint statement by BRICS nations over Abu Dhabi’s ties to Israel.

Araghchi does not offer details on what was in the BRICS statement that the UAE opposed.

“The final statement by the BRICS ministerial meeting was blocked — or some parts of that were blocked — by a member State that has its own special relations with Israel, and this is very unfortunate,” Araghchi tells reporters at the conclusions of the BRICS ministerial gathering, avoiding reference to the UAE by name.

BRICS includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Iran, the UAE and Indonesia.

“We have no difficulty with that certain country. They have not been our target in the current war. We only hit American military bases and American military installations, which are unfortunately on their soil,” Araghchi falsely claims, neglecting to mention the countless civilian sites targeted by Iran.

“The only reason they stopped the final statement was their support to Israel and the United States in their aggression against Iran, which is very, very unfortunate.”

“I hope by the time that we come for the [next] summit, they come to a good understanding that Iran is a neighbor. We have to live with each other. We have lived for centuries, and we have to live for centuries to come,” Araghchi says.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said a BRICS member state with “special relations” with Israel had blocked the meeting’s final statement, calling it “very unfortunate.” He said Iran had no quarrel with the country itself and had targeted only US military sites on its… pic.twitter.com/j8uBvSfvH7

— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) May 15, 2026