Within the UAE, this species has been recorded from the Ru'us al-Jibal (Jongbloed et al. 2003). It is uncertain as to whether this species should also include records under the name of Roemeria refracta [= Papaver refractum (DC.) K.-F.Günther] within the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011). Globally, the native range of this species extends across northern Africa, the Mediterranean, central Asia and Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

The presence of this species in the UAE is not yet confirmed, although presence in parts of the Ru'us al-Jibal close to Oman is possible as suitable habitat occurs at similar elevations (G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019), and S. Ghazanfar (pers. comm. 2019) reports that there is a specimen at held at RBG Kew from the UAE. Feulner (2011) recorded the species from a site in the Ru'us al-Jibal of Oman (Awshaq basin and As-Sayh/As-Saye plain) to the northeast of the Sahasa plain, on slopes beside the open upper reaches of a wadi below Jebel Harim and Ra's Mintera (G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019). Other records found from the area are: (1) Patzelt et al. (2014; rocky limestone plateau; 1,450 m, northern Oman: Musandam, Jebel Harim, Sahil Al Sahosa (Sahasa plain)), and (2) <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00903483"">RBGE Herbarium</a> (coll. A. Patzelt, 2014, 1,433 m, silty area on Sahasa plateau, Jebel Harim area). The global range of this species is from Egypt (Sinai), through the Arabian Peninsula (although not recorded for the UAE), to Iran and Pakistan and north to Central Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, it has been recorded from the Ru'us al-Jibal (Jongbloed et al. 2003), although this occurrence is now considered uncertain and may refer to one or more other Galium species (Feulner 2011, 2016) and its presence in the country requires confirmation. The species has not been confirmed from Oman, with a record from there requiring confirmation (S. Ghazanfar pers. comm. 2019). Globally, the native range of this species spans across Europe, to the Arabian Peninsula and to the western Himalayas (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

In the UAE, the species is known from north of Masafi (A.R. Western and F. Karim; Jongbloed et al. 2003) on gravel plains in the Hajar Mountains (MEW 2010) and the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011). The species has not been recorded for Wadi Wurayah National Park, but could easily be missed in surveys (Feulner 2016) and may occur there. In the Ru'us al-Jibal, the species is known from two localities, both within Omani territory, one being bedrock slopes at c.900 m above Wadi Sha'am, very close to the UAE border, and the other being the spring at 'Ayn as-Sih (470 m) in Wadi al-Ayn (Feulner 2011). The species has an almost circum-Mediterranean distribution (Marhold 2011), extending eastwards through the Arabian Peninsula (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman; Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

The species was originally described for the UAE from Wadi Wurayah National Park (WWNP; Shahid and Rao 2015). However, Feulner (2016) later revised the identification of his records to K. elatine, and comments that ""Four of the very few UAE records [of K. elatine] are from WWNP.""; the location of records outside WWNP is not known. The global range of this species is from Macaronesia, through much of Europe to Central Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019). Marhold (2011) includes parts of North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean in the distribution. GRIN (2019) considers the species native to Europe, parts of northern Africa, West Asia, and also the Arabian Peninsula (Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen). The species has been widely introduced and is considered a noxious weed in some countries.

Jongbloed et al. (2003) presented a single record of this species, however that record is from Oman (Wilayat Mahdhah; Feulner 2014). Feulner (2014) recorded this species for the UAE from the Yas branch of Wadi Mowrid (Fujairah), northwest of Masafi, where it was found along a donkey track. Pagad et al. (2017) considered this species to be introduced to the UAE through agriculture, and it is listed as an introduced landscape plants by MoCCaE (O. Al Shamsi pers. comm. 2018), however the UAE native plant working group (May 2019) considered the species to be native. The native range of this species is from south-east Europe to Central Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and in Africa from the north through the Sahara (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018). Regionally, the only other records are from Saudi Arabia (Foley 2004). The species has been very widely introduced as a weed of agricultural crops.

Within the UAE, it has been recorded from Wadi Bih in the Ru'us al-Jibal (Böer and Chaudhary 1999). Mandaville recorded the species from two heavily anthropogenic sites nearby in Oman; all records are low elevation sites. The native range of this species spans from Jordan to southwest Iran (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

The presence and distribution of this species in the UAE is uncertain, in part as a result of previous nomenclatural confusion with other species of the genus, and the draft Red Data Book for the UAE considered it to refer to a misidentified record (MEW 2010). The species was not formally mentioned by Jongbloed et al. (2003), but is thought to be widespread in the Hajar Mountains and occurs on Jebel Hafeet (M. Jongbloed pers. comm. 2019). The species occurs in Saudi Arabia, southern Yemen, Egypt, Palestine, Israel, Syria and Jordan (Chamberlain and Lamond 1996). Chamberlain and Lamond (1996) consider the species to not occur in the UAE, having a disjunct distribution in the Arabian Peninsula, restricted to north-west Saudi Arabia and the Hadramaut in Yemen. Plants of the World Online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019) give a broader distribution, from Libya to Syria, and throughout the entire Arabian Peninsula.

Within the UAE, this species has been recorded from Khor Fakkan and Bitnah (Jongbloed et al. 2003) on the east coast. M.R.K. Khan and G.R. Feulner have not seen the species in the UAE (pers. comm. 2019). Globally, this species is native to Europe, Africa, tropical Asia and temperate Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

In the UAE, the species has been recorded from Fujairah Emirate (between Khatt and Dibba; <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00621079"">RBGE Herbarium</a>, coll. R.A. Western, 1982) and from Abu Dhabi Emirate (Abu Dhabi Island; Al Khubairat and Al Manhal c.1 km from coast; <a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00621058"">RBGE Herbarium</a>, coll. R.A. Western, 1982). RBG Kew also hold a record from Sharjah city (a disturbed area, where the plants grow at the bases of irrigated ornamental trees), which it is potentially introduced. Another record in this area was reported in 2019 (Dave Aplin pers. comm. 2019). The global range of this species is throughout much of the Old World, including the Arabian Peninsula, and it has been widely introduced elsewhere (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).