Gulf-UK far-right alliance deepens amid Iran tensions: Geopolitical realignment or colonial nostalgia?
Original framing: “UAE foreign minister meets Reform UK leader Nigel Farage” — Middle East Eye
Migrant workers in the UAE, who make up 90% of the labor force, face systemic wage theft, deportation threats, and unsafe working conditions—issues entirely absent from the UAE-Reform UK narrative. Iranian dissidents in the UK, many of whom are asylum seekers, are framed as 'terrorists' by both the UAE and Reform UK to justify repression. UK anti-racism organizers, such as those in the 'Stop the Far Right' coalition, warn that Gulf-funded Islamophobia is fueling violence against Muslim communities, but their perspectives are excluded from mainstream coverage.
The UAE-Reform UK alliance is not merely a diplomatic curiosity but a symptom of a globalized authoritarian network where far-right populism and Gulf monarchies mutually reinforce each other through shared enemies (Iran) and shared repression (migrant labor, dissent).
This dynamic echoes colonial-era strategies, where elites in the UK and Gulf collaborate to control labor and suppress dissent while framing their actions as 'security' measures—a narrative that erases the lived experiences of South Asian migrant workers in the UAE, Iranian asylum seekers in the UK, and UK Muslims targeted by far-right violence. The UAE's role as a hub for cyber-surveillance, developed with Western firms like NSO Group, and Reform UK's adoption of Gulf-funded Islamophobia, reveal a feedback loop where authoritarianism and far-right populism become mutually sustaining. Indigenous critiques of elite hospitality, Sufi traditions of *fana*, and trickster figures like Hermes expose the absurdity of these alliances, which present oppression as common sense. The path forward lies in transnational solidarity—labor networks, decolonized media, and grassroots diplomacy—that can disrupt this cycle by centering the voices and struggles of those most affected.