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Sultan Al-Jaber calls Strait of Hormuz blockade “economic terrorism”

24 March 2026

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The weaponisation of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran is an act of “economic terrorism”, with its global impact far beyond energy markets, Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber, the UAE’s Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and managing director and group CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), has said at an energy industry conference in the US.

Speaking at CERAWeek, taking place in Houston, Texas, Al-Jaber said that when the Strait of Hormuz is threatened, the human cost is exponential, and the consequences reach factories, farms and families around the world.

Al-Jaber, who is also chairman of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar), said “energy security is not just a slogan, it’s the difference between lights on and lights off”. He stressed that the world’s critical arteries must remain open and the Strait of Hormuz is one of those arteries.

“Twenty-one miles wide. Twenty million barrels a day. Nearly a fifth of the world’s oil and gas. Over a third of the world’s fertiliser. Almost a quarter of the world’s petrochemicals and significant amounts of industrial metals. In short, much of the oxygen of the global economy runs through a single throat. Yet, Iran believes that choking it is an acceptable strategy.

“When Hormuz is squeezed, the pressure is immediately felt around the world. In just three weeks, the price of oil has risen by 50%. This is raising the cost of living for those who can least afford it and slowing economic growth everywhere. From factories, to farms, to families around the world, the human cost is mounting by the day,” Al-Jaber, who also serves as the executive chairman of Adnoc’s overseas investment vehicle XRG, remarked.

“So let me be absolutely clear. Weaponising the Strait of Hormuz is not an act of aggression against one nation. It is economic terrorism against every nation. And no country should be allowed to hold Hormuz hostage, not now, not ever. And while we appreciate all efforts to stabilise markets and reduce prices, this is not a supply issue. It is a security issue, and it has only one durable answer: keeping the Strait open. We cannot trade our way out of this crisis,” he stressed.

Al-Jaber stressed the UAE did not ask for conflict and had taken every possible step to prevent it. “But when the moment came, we were ready. Our defences have been tested. Our resilience has been tested. Our character has been tested. And we withstood.

ALSO READ: Adnoc Gas says operations continuing despite security incidents

“At Adnoc, we took hits no civilian enterprise, let alone one focused on delivering energy to the world, should ever have to take. We are deploying extraordinary measures to keep our people safe and to make sure, as much as possible, every customer and every stakeholder gets what they need,” he said.

“We will continue to defend our nation and our way of life. In fact, this experience has only reinforced our model of pragmatic progress, rooted in realism not ideology, steady in its course, practical in its approach and relentlessly focused on results.”

Al-Jaber said the UAE and Adnoc’s resilience was not a reaction, but the result of years of investment in infrastructure, preparation and long-term planning and strategic partnerships. “For the UAE, partnership is not just something we do. It is who we are. Our commitments are concrete. Our word is our currency. And when it really matters, we step up and show up.

“That is why our relationship with all our partners, including the United States, endure. Through Adnoc, XRG and Masdar we have already invested more than $85bn in US energy assets, supporting power generation, advanced chemicals and jobs across 19 states,” Al-Jaber said, adding the US offers a unique combination of resource depth and investment stability.

“We are actively exploring opportunities across the whole value chain. And we are keen to expand our investments in hard infrastructure from storage to liquefaction to regasification plants.”

Turning to the future, Al-Jaber said the crisis has revealed two very different visions. One seeks to spread instability. One seeks to promote prosperity. The UAE, he added, made its choice long ago.

“We built Adnoc into one of the most reliable energy companies on Earth not because disruption never reaches our borders, but because when it does, we stay the course. That’s why we have diversified how we produce energy. We have expanded the routes that connect supply to markets.

“We have integrated all sources of energy at scale. We have embedded technology and AI across our operations as the force multiplier that will define the next era of energy. And we have built a global network of partners who believe that energy security is a shared responsibility.”

Photo: File image

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Indrajit Sen

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