Iran's new Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Reza Ameri says a "promising and bright" future awaits relations between the two countries as the diplomatic drive in the West Asian region has gained momentum in recent months.
Upon arriving in the UAE capital on Monday to start his mission, Ameri expressed hope that mutual ties would be further expanded in line with the determination of the two countries' authorities.
Iran appointed Ameri for the new mission in April. The diplomat has previously served as the Director General of the Foreign Ministry’s Department of Iranian Expatriates, Director General of the Foreign Ministry’s Middle East Affairs Department, and Iran's Ambassador to Sudan, Eritrea and Algeria, according to the Iranian Foreign Ministry website.
The envoy also held a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian on June 7 before the start of his mission. In the meeting, the minister stressed the necessity of strengthening ties with neighbors and called for special attention to be paid to the affairs of the Iranian expatriates in the UAE.
Amir-Abdollahian traveled to the UAE in June last year to pay his respects after the death of President Khalifa bin Zayed, while Tehran welcomed the appointment of the Persian Gulf state’s new ruler.
Amir-Abdollahian's trip was the highest-level visit by an Iranian official to the Persian Gulf country after several months.
The UAE reinstated its ambassador to Iran last September.
Abu Dhabi downgraded its relations with Tehran in 2016 after Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran. However, Iran and Saudi Arabia in March agreed to restore their diplomatic relations after a seven-year break based on a China-mediated agreement.
Iran on June 6 officially reopened its embassy in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh.
A huge re-exporting hub in the Persian Gulf, the UAE has been a major supplier of goods and machinery to Iran since 2018 when Tehran came under a series of unilateral economic sanctions by the United States.
On April 22, the foreign ministers of Iran and the UAE held a telephone conversation to discuss issues of mutual interest. Iran's top diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said that Tehran "considers no limits for the development of cooperation with the UAE."
The Emirati foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for his part, underscored the need for the promotion of bilateral ties in pursuit of common interests, stressing that there exist ample opportunities for joint cooperation between the two neighboring states.