UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call
Phone conversation took place as 60-day US-Iran agreement expired and attacks on Gulf shipping continued
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
UAE president discusses regional developments with Trump
Photograph: Arab News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and US President Donald Trump discussed regional tensions in a phone call on 18 August 2026, as a 60-day US-Iran agreement expired.
- The call followed a 10-day US CENTCOM visit to the Middle East, including the UAE, and Iran’s statement that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until US demands were met.
- The UAE accused Iran of attacking an ADNOC-operated tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, the third such attack in a week, according to Arab News.
- No left- or centre-rated outlet carried the story, leaving the coverage to six right-rated reports and three unrated digests.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 6 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 3 of the 9 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
55/100
Craft
55/100
Hype
15/100
9 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
None of the 6 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and US President Donald Trump spoke by phone on 18 August 2026. The call took place as a 60-day window for a US-Iran agreement expired, with talks deadlocked over maritime security and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. Arab News reported the conversation coincided with the expiry.
The two leaders discussed bilateral relations and regional developments, according to the Emirates News Agency (WAM). Anadolu Ajansı reported the call followed a 10-day visit by US CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper to the Middle East, including the UAE. Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf stated on 18 August that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until Washington met Tehran’s demands, as reported by Arab News.
The UAE accused Iran of attacking an ADNOC-operated tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, the third such attack in a week, according to Arab News. Iran has denied targeting commercial vessels. Shipping through the strait has fallen sharply, disrupting energy exports.
What the reports disagree on
Arab News reported the 60-day US-Iran agreement expired on the day of the call, with talks deadlocked. Anadolu Ajansı did not mention the expiry or the deadlock. Arab News stated Iran’s Parliament Speaker said the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until US demands were met; Anadolu Ajansı did not report the statement.
What the coverage left out
No left- or centre-rated outlet ran the story. None of the right-rated digests or reports mentioned the cost or volume of disrupted energy exports through the Strait of Hormuz.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 5 times, most recently on 18 Aug 2026, 19:00, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call
Anadolu Ajansı — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated left has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Centre
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated centre has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Right
6 rated outlets
- All six right-rated digests and reports led on the phone call between the UAE and US presidents. Arab News and Anadolu Ajansı, the two full reports, carried the expiry of the 60-day US-Iran agreement, Iran’s statement on the Strait of Hormuz, and the UAE’s accusation of Iranian attacks on ADNOC-operated tankers. The digests did not mention the attacks or Iran’s statement.
- Arab News quoted Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf: “the strategic waterway would remain closed until Washington met Tehran’s demands under an interim agreement reached in June, including lifting restrictions on Iranian ports and oil exports, releasing frozen assets and ending military operations and threats.” Anadolu Ajansı did not quote Ghalibaf or any Iranian official.
- Arab News described the Strait of Hormuz as “a crucial shipping route for the UAE and other Gulf states.” Anadolu Ajansı called it “a critical export route for Gulf-produced oil and gas.”
Read it at the source
9 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Centre
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Right
6- UAE president discusses regional developments with Trump (opens Arab News in a new tab)
- US, Emirati presidents discuss bilateral ties, regional developments (opens Anadolu Ajansı in a new tab)
Anadolu Ajansı — is Anadolu Ajansı biased? Our profile of this outlet
- UAE President discusses latest regional developments in call with Trump (opens Khaleej Times in a new tab)
Khaleej Times — is Khaleej Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- UAE President receives phone call from US President (opens Gulf News in a new tab)
- UAE President, Trump Discuss Regional Developments (opens Mehr News Agency in a new tab)
Mehr News Agency — is Mehr News Agency biased? Our profile of this outlet
- UAE President, US President discuss bilateral ties and Middle East developments (opens Emirates24|7 in a new tab)
Emirates24|7 — is Emirates24|7 biased? Our profile of this outlet
Not rated
3- US and UAE Leaders Engage in Critical Telephone Diplomacy. (opens Aydınlık in a new tab)
- Trump and UAE Leader Discussed the Middle East. (opens Haberler in a new tab)
- UAE President, Trump discuss regional issues and ways to enhance bilateral ties (opens Gulf Today in a new tab)
Gulf Today — is Gulf Today biased? Our profile of this outlet
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call?
- Of the 6 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 0% are rated left, 0% are rated centre, 100% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 9. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 6 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call biased?
- UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call is one event reported by 9 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered UAE President and Trump discuss Iran tensions in 18 August call?
- 9 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What did the UAE and US presidents discuss in their 18 August call?
- UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and US President Donald Trump discussed regional tensions, bilateral relations, and ways to strengthen cooperation. The call took place as a 60-day US-Iran agreement expired and Iran stated the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until US demands were met.
- Why is the Strait of Hormuz significant in this dispute?
- The Strait of Hormuz is a crucial shipping route for Gulf oil and gas exports. Iran’s Parliament Speaker stated it would remain closed until US demands were met, disrupting energy supplies. The UAE accused Iran of attacking ADNOC-operated tankers in the strait, the third such attack in a week.
- Which outlets reported on the UAE-US call?
- Six right-rated outlets carried the story, including Arab News and Anadolu Ajansı, which published full reports. Three unrated digests also ran it. No left- or centre-rated outlet covered the call or the related tensions.
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
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