A vigorous Saudi media campaign targeting neighboring Emirati countries is fueling fears of a new crisis in the Gulf, the economic and financial heart of the Middle East.

Accusations of human rights abuses and "treason" are multiplying in Saudi state media and on social media against Abu Dhabi, since Riyadh intervened in Yemen to repel an offensive by UAE-backed separatists last month.

The Gulf had not seen such vehement rhetoric since the more than three-year blockade jointly imposed on Qatar in 2017.

In normal times, the oil and gas monarchies of the Gulf strive to project an image of stability, favorable to tourism and the businesses they are trying to develop to diversify the economy.

But Riyadh views the regional ambitions of its small neighbor with suspicion, according to analysts.

From Libya to Yemen and the Horn of Africa, "the Emirates are investing in chaos and supporting separatists," Al-Ekhbariya TV claimed in a recent report.

According to Anna Jacobs, a Gulf specialist, the two countries "have experienced serious points of friction in recent years, but these tensions are now being expressed publicly in an unprecedented way."

"Riyadh is now clearly displaying its disagreements with Abu Dhabi's regional policies and is showing no signs of appeasement," she adds.

"We have become, through our success, a regional model (...) a regional power. Is it our fault?", Emirati political scientist Abdulkhaleq Abdulla told AFP.

"We do not want to provoke Saudi Arabia. It is not in our nature to provoke our big brother," he adds, while the Emirates remain largely silent.

- Sphere of influence -

The two neighbors have long been allies, with the Emirati president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, even being considered a mentor to the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman.

Their economies are closely linked: trade was around $36 billion in 2024, according to official data, and Saudi Arabia is the UAE's third largest trading partner.

But there is "a deep feeling that the Emirates have betrayed the strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia and are now seeking to stir up crises in the Saudi sphere of influence," Saudi analyst Soliman Al-Okaily told AFP.

This week, Yemeni officials backed by Riyadh invited foreign media, including AFP, to visit what they described as "secret prisons" run by the Emirates and their allies in Yemen, accusations rejected by Abu Dhabi.

On the Al-Ekhbariya channel, researcher Muneef Amash al-Harbi recently described Abu Dhabi as "an Israeli project dressed in a gandoura," referring to the traditional male garment of the Gulf and the normalization of relations with Israel in 2020.

- "Ferocity" -

A break in diplomatic relations is unlikely, according to analyst Soliman Al-Okaily, but "Riyadh could take painful economic measures".

In this context, other alliances are forming.

The Emirati president visited New Delhi this week to strengthen relations, particularly in the area of defense.

Riyadh concluded a mutual defense agreement with India's rival, Pakistan, last year.

In Sudan, another area of discord, Saudi Arabia and the United States have submitted a new ceasefire proposal to the army, a government source told AFP.

This project excludes the Emirates from the initiative, even though they were also pushing for a truce.

They are accused of supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries, who have been at war with the army since 2023, which they deny.

Somalia, which was reportedly courted by Riyadh, also cancelled in January all its agreements with the Emirates, which support the breakaway region of Somaliland, recently recognized as a state by Israel.

And Saudi Arabia is strengthening its ties with Qatar. Last month, a high-speed rail project between Riyadh and Doha was approved.

Despite the "ferocity" of the public attacks, Adam Baron, a researcher at the New America think tank, believes that nothing is decided and that the Saudi message still oscillates between "restraint and potential escalation".