UAE plans zero dependency on Strait of Hormuz with new ports

The UAE is pursuing an ambitious strategy to eliminate its dependency on the Strait of Hormuz, the critical maritime chokepoint through which much of its $1 trillion annual non-oil trade flows. With the US and Iran locked in conflict, nervous Asian exporters have already begun rerouting cargo to Oman's ports—Duqm, Salalah, and Sohar—which are experiencing a renaissance. The UAE's Minister for Foreign Trade, Thani Al Zeyoudi, outlined plans to invest heavily in Khor Fakkan, Fujairah, and Dibba, plus an entirely new facility on the country's east coast. "We're moving towards having zero Hormuz dependency, regardless of whether it's open or not," Zeyoudi told Bloomberg.

Currently, the UAE's economic heart beats through Jebel Ali and Khalifa ports, which form the single most vital link in a logistics corridor stretching from Singapore to Europe. Replicating that status is not easy, but war necessitates the impossible. The new terminals offer insurance, but analysts caution that securing trade ultimately requires lasting peace, not just pouring concrete. The shift could fundamentally reshape Middle Eastern trade flows, with Oman emerging as a major beneficiary and the UAE diversifying its port infrastructure to hedge against geopolitical risk.