As the Iran war rages, will UAE remain a ‘safe haven’ for the arts? This expert thinks so

The United Arab Emirates’ reputation as a sanctuary in the Middle East for international business is now facing a great challenge as it catches the splashback of the war between Iran, Israel and the United States. With Iran targeting the UAE’s economic arteries, including the Dubai International Airport and the vital oil facility in Fujairah City, the collateral damage is now spreading to the Emirates’ cultural landscape. Some wonder if the situation will affect the regional arts industry. Lebanese-Italian conductor and musicologist Toufic Maatouk is also the artistic programming adviser for the Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation (ADMAF), which is responsible for the Abu Dhabi Festival (ADF), an annual art and classical music festival in the UAE. He does not seem to be too concerned. “[The UAE] is a safe haven,” he says. “Otherwise, a lot of people, due to what’s happening, [would] have left.” Founded in 1996, the ADMAF has grown into one of the region’s leading cultural platforms. Its priority is to support cultural exchange between the UAE and more than 30 other countries. Maatouk also recently spoke at the Hong Kong International Cultural Summit 2026 in the city’s West Kowloon Cultural District on March 22 and 23. There, he took part in a panel discussion about the evolution of arts institutions into cultural hubs, and how to reconnect with artists, audiences and communities in a changing cultural landscape. “If you believe in anything, you will do it,” Maatouk tells the South China Morning Post. “You will do it despite all the danger, all the challenges. The key is believing in our mission.” That mission that he speaks of is “bringing the world to Abu Dhabi and bringing Abu Dhabi to the world”. He says that the ADF functions on a parallel partnership model. While the festival invites many artists to perform in Abu Dhabi, it also establishes many collaborative projects in which Emirati artists exhibit their work internationally as part of the “Abu Dhabi Festival Abroad initiative”. This is why Maatouk strongly believes the current situation between Iran and the UAE will have a limited impact on the arts institution’s programming, even if tourism to the Emirates drops significantly. An example of ADF’s international programmes is “Proximities”, which is currently running at South Korea’s Seoul Museum of Art. The collaborative exhibition features 110 artworks by 47 UAE-based artists, the largest presentation of Emirati contemporary art to date in South Korea. In October 2025, the ADF signed a memorandum of understanding with the Hong Kong Ballet to spearhead international projects between Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong. Exciting programmes with Shanghai can also be expected, Maatouk says. Despite its name, the ADF is, in many ways, unlike a typical festival, he says. Instead of simply commissioning one performance from a different artist each time, it focuses on long-term relationships, often inviting artists back or building on previous projects. “There is a danger that the audience are only passive spectators. They just come, they see the performance and they go,” Maatouk says, explaining why the ADF also prioritises education initiatives, community outreach and open rehearsals. The festival also celebrates a “country of honour” each year, fostering a spirit of friendship through diverse cultural programming. For 2026, the country of honour is the United States, and the programme will celebrate 250 years of American independence and more than half a century of bilateral relations with the UAE. In 2024, the country of honour was China; in 2025, it was Japan. Every programme scheduled for April in Abu Dhabi is projected to go ahead as scheduled, with no suspension or cancellations for security reasons expected at this moment. These programmes include performances by American singer Jon Batiste and the American Ballet Theatre, who are slated to perform at the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental. Maatouk says there is always a “plan B and C” on the off-chance things do go awry. Rehana Mughal, director of the British Council’s creative economy global programme, is less optimistic and believes that the financial downturn in the UAE’s arts industry will “hit them hard”. “Dubai and Abu Dhabi … they’ve been really positioning themselves as an alternative destination for the cultured mind – a place to go for guaranteed sunshine and clean beaches,” says Mughal, who is based in London but previously worked in Abu Dhabi for the British Council. She explains that cast members in orchestras or theatre productions abroad may be reluctant to travel to the UAE because of safety concerns and the ongoing pro-Palestinian boycott movement in reaction to the Emirates’ normalisation of relations with Israel. Mughal’s current work revolves around organising international arts partnerships. In her former role as director of arts at the British embassy in Beijing, she navigated similar political anxieties from international institutions that were initially reluctant to collaborate – but they often reached an agreement after deeper discussion. She imagines that the Iran war will lead art lovers towards destinations outside the UAE. “It may well be that people will choose to travel locally … to known places that are safe across Europe,” she says. She also foresees a trend of visitors going to Central Asia for its arts scene, specifically pointing to Uzbekistan and the Western Balkans. Drawing from her experience working in mainland China during the Covid-19 pandemic, she imagines that the arts industry in the Emirates may go increasingly digital with more online masterclasses and forums. Mughal ultimately believes that the purpose of cultural diplomacy is to “learn about each other’s context, and develop perhaps a more nuanced and realistic, actual understanding … that, for me, lasts far beyond the politician that comes through [once] a year”. Maatouk has a similar opinion. “Abu Dhabi believes in culture – that culture can change the face of the world and what’s all happening now,” he says. He adds that, despite global headlines about missile strikes, the ADF’s three-year planning cycle ensures the festival will continue building new international ties and nurturing old ones for the foreseeable future.

As the Iran war rages, will UAE remain a ‘safe haven’ for the arts? This expert thinks so

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation programming adviser Toufic Maatouk shares why the Iran war doesn’t worry him. But not everyone agrees

Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation programming adviser Toufic Maatouk shares why the Iran war doesn’t worry him. But not everyone agrees