The United Arab Emirates said that it would join a U.S.-led maritime coalition aimed at protecting international shipping in and near the Strait of Hormuz following alleged Iranian attacks on oil tankers there. 

The UAE joins neighbors Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, along with the United Kingdom and Australia, in the effort to protect vessels in the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf and the narrow Strait of Hormuz waterway that separates the gulfs and acts as a transit point for a fifth of the world's oil exports.

The announcement came as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in the UAE on Thursday for a brief stopover after visiting Saudi Arabia.

Emirati Foreign Ministry official Salem al Zaabi was quoted by the state-run WAM news agency as saying that the UAE joined the coalition to "ensure global energy security and the continued flow of energy supplies to the global economy."

It was not immediately clear what the UAE would contribute to the effort, but the country's small navy posse several patrols and missile boats.

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