Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait represent one of the world’s most strategically vital maritime corridors. This chokepoint facilitates a substantial share of global trade flows, making control or influence over it a decisive factor in international economic stability, energy security, and regional power dynamics. Recognizing this geopolitical sensitivity, The UAE has deliberately and strategically expanded its military, economic, and infrastructural presence along the western shores of the Red Sea and throughout the Horn of Africa.This proactive engagement has transformed the UAE from a primarily economic and commercial actor concentrated in the Persian Gulf into an active, interventionist, and strategically assertive player in the Horn of Africa and Red Sea region. This article, drawing on the neoclassical realist framework, seeks to address the question: How does the United Arab Emirates redefine the balance of power in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea through the use of geoeconomic and security instruments? The research hypothesis posits that the UAE, by combining geoeconomic and security tools, aims to reshape the security order in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea around a network of non-state actors aligned with its interests. This study through the examination of official documents, trade data, and field reports—concludes that the UAE’s influence in Sudan and Yemen extends beyond geoeconomic dimensions and has contributed to redefining the security order in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea. The article’s data are qualitative and explanatory in nature, derived from library and internet-based sources.