From Dubai: The Middle East conflict entered a new phase on Saturday as Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian extended what he described as an apology to neighbouring Gulf countries whilst simultaneously rejecting any prospect of capitulation to Washington and Tel Aviv. The statement, delivered via prerecorded address on state television, revealed the genuine complexity of the region's diplomatic landscape: even as one regional power seeks to contain collateral damage to its neighbours, the United States and its allies remain locked in maximalist postures that leave little room for negotiation.
Pezeshkian apologised for Iran's attacks on regional countries, saying that Tehran would halt them and suggesting they were caused by miscommunication in the ranks.The Iranian president stated that neighbouring countries would not be attacked unless an attack against Iran originated from their territory.He blamed the killing of the country's supreme leader and other top officials for what sounded like a loss of command and control in the armed forces in recent days.
The significance of this shift should not be overstated.After launching more than 2,000 missiles and drones at Gulf states during the first week of the war, Iran may be shifting course. Yet the apology carried a sharp caveat.Iran's president said that a demand by the United States for an unconditional surrender is a 'dream that they should take to their grave.'
The commercial impact of this conflict has reverberated through aviation hubs across the region.Emirates announced that all flights to and from Dubai would be suspended until further notice, but the decision was reversed and the airline said it would resume operations.Emirates announced that on 5 and 6 March, more than 100 flights would depart from Dubai and return, carrying passengers travelling to final destinations as well as essential cargo including perishables and pharmaceuticals, with the airline gradually rebuilding its flying schedule depending on airspace availability and operational requirements being met.
The broader disruption to global travel and commerce has been staggering.Dubai International Airport handled a record 95.2 million passengers last year, ensuring its status as the world's busiest airport when measured by international travel.More than 23,000 flights have been cancelled globally since Iran's first retaliatory strike, with those cancellations including in key hubs such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha, stranding hundreds of thousands of travellers in the area.
Yet Washington's response to Iran's gestures toward regional de-escalation was categorical rejection.President Donald Trump rejected the idea of an immediate diplomatic off-ramp to the war in Iran, saying there would be 'no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER' hours after Iran's president raised the prospect of mediation efforts.The White House said the US expects the war to go on for approximately four to six more weeks.
This stands in stark contrast to what many regional analysts observe.A Kuwait-based analyst said the U.S. appeared to have underestimated the risk to its Gulf Arab allies, believing American troops and Israel would be the primary targets of Iranian retaliation.Qatar's energy minister warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could 'bring down the economies of the world,' predicting a widespread shutdown of Gulf energy exports that could send oil to $150 a barrel.
The regional dynamics at play are more complex than the headlines suggest. Gulf states have been caught between Iranian retaliatory strikes that have directly damaged their territory and the broader US-Israeli military campaign.Official reactions by the Gulf Arab countries have been muted, but public figures with close ties to their governments have been openly critical of the U.S., suggesting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dragged President Donald Trump into a needless war.
What Western coverage frequently misses is that Iran's apology to its neighbours represents genuine recognition of a strategic miscalculation. By broadening the conflict across the Gulf rather than targeting only Israel and US military installations, Tehran has alienated potential partners and handed additional justification to those advocating for deeper military intervention. Yet this does not mean surrender is imminent or even conceivable within Iran's political framework.
The situation reveals genuine tension between competing approaches to regional security. The Trump administration's insistence on unconditional surrender leaves little space for face-saving compromises that might appeal to Tehran's leadership. Conversely, Iran's missile and drone campaigns against civilian and commercial targets across the Gulf have inflicted real economic damage on states with whom productive relations might be possible.
As aviation gradually restarts and hundreds of thousands of stranded passengers begin moving again, the underlying conflict remains fundamentally unresolved. Iran has shown willingness to adjust its tactics to reduce collateral damage to regional neighbours. Whether such signals will be reciprocated by Washington, or whether escalation remains the default trajectory, will determine whether the Gulf's economic recovery can proceed or whether further disruption awaits.