Abdul Jabbar Abu Ras
30 July 2019•Update: 30 July 2019
TEHRAN
A military delegation from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday arrived in Iran’s capital, Tehran, to hold talks on border cooperation between the two countries, Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA reported.
The visit comes despite recent tensions between the two countries over oil tanker incidents in the Gulf region.
The seven-member Emirati delegation came to attend the Tehran-hosted 6th meeting of coast guards of the two countries.
The visit comes in the context of "border cooperation," said the news agency, without giving the date of the meeting.
The last such meeting was held in 2013, in Tehran, according to the same source.
Ties between Abu Dhabi and Tehran have been strained over the three disputed islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa. Abu Dhabi claims the islands are occupied by Iran.
Tensions between the two countries have also been aggravated during the five-year military conflict in Yemen, where the UAE is part of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
They have also increased over accusations against Iran of targeting -- or inciting other groups to target -- oil tankers in the Gulf, which Tehran denies.
In May, the UAE announced that four oil tankers were subjected to sabotage operations off the port of Fujairah. Iran denied U.S. accusations of responsibility for the attack.
