TEHRAN - In light of improving relations between Iran and its Persian Gulf neighbors, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, paid a visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday to meet senior Emirati officials.

Shamkhani was leading a team of leading economic, financial, and security officials to the UAE.

During a meeting with Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, Iran’s top security official said that the United States and the Israeli regime are to blame for most of the regional conflicts.

‘Collective security’

While highlighting the role of extra-regional nations in causing regional crises, Shamkhani he did not completely rule out the possibility of “collective regional security” among the region’s players.

Efforts to achieve collective security based on local capacities might help to put a stop to many of the issues that are happening right now, he noted.

The establishment of a more powerful region is an attainable goal, the Iranian official said, adding that everyone must take the necessary measures in that direction.

On the bilateral relationship, Shamkhani emphasized the need to strengthen and expand ties between the two nations in all spheres given their long history of diplomatic ties as well as their shared religious and cultural heritage.

As their bilateral cooperation grows, Iran and the UAE may strengthen their neighborly diplomacy, according to Shamkhani.

‘Determining step’

President Bin Zayed, for his part, expressed pleasure over Shamkhani’s visit to the UAE and complimented Iran on its detente with Riyadh, which he hailed as a “determining step” towards improving synergy and convergence among regional nations.

He highlighted that “the Emirates is very much interested in and ready for resolution of some instances of misunderstanding between the countries towards enhancement of the bilateral relations to their highest level.”

“Animosity should be replaced with cooperation”

During a meeting with his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Shamkhani called for goodwill to resolve “family differences” and emphasized that in order to address the current challenges, which do not advantage any regional party, cooperation must take the place of hostilities.

The top Iranian security official reaffirmed Tehran’s unwavering foreign policy stance, which favors collective, enduring, and productive cooperation with neighbors, saying that cooperation and convergence must replace hostility and divergence in order to find a solution to the region’s troubles.

Shamkhani highlighted the need to resolve family conflicts via conversation, goodwill, and compromise so that all nations might work together to build a strong and prosperous region. 

He compared regional governments to members of a large family who share a common fate.

He forewarned that rivalries and distrust among the nations of the Persian Gulf are a significant barrier to the region’s economic progress and a target for foes from outside the region.

“It is necessary to prevent the aliens from playing an unconstructive role and try to enhance the security, calm and welfare for the people of the region through dialogue, interaction, and the promotion of political, security, economic and cultural cooperation,” Shamkhani suggested. 

Al Nahyan, for his part, emphasized the value of collaboration and goodwill with Iran as a significant and strong nation in the region.

The UAE official congratulated Iran for striking an agreement with Saudi Arabia to resume diplomatic ties and said the appeasement will help advance peace, stability, and long-term security throughout the region.

He said one of the UAE’s key aims is to strengthen the cordial and fraternal relationships between Abu Dhabi and Iran.