ISTANBUL

The United Arab Emirates on Monday participated in the Gulf Shield 2026 military exercise in Saudi Arabia, despite a rift with Riyadh over the situation in Yemen.

A Defense Ministry statement said the exercise aims to “raise combat readiness, enhance joint military action, and achieve integration in a joint operational environment in line with best practices.”

The training includes “a package of procedures and scenarios designed to measure readiness and the effectiveness of responses to various threats, thereby strengthening the GCC states’ flexible deterrence system,” it added.

Along with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, the exercise also features forces from Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

The training was held days after a rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE over Abu Dhabi’s role in Yemen. Riyadh accused the UAE of pushing forces of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) to carry out military operations along the kingdom’s southern border. Abu Dhabi denied the accusation.

Last month, the STC captured the eastern provinces of Hadhramaut and al-Mahra, which they account for nearly half of Yemen’s territory and share borders with Saudi Arabia.

The STC says successive Yemeni governments have marginalized southern regions politically and economically and calls for secession. Yemeni authorities reject the claim and reaffirm their commitment to the country’s unity.