Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on Monday. The Hakan Fidan UAE meeting came one day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Gulf state and met the same leader.
Fidan also held meetings with UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He described the visit as productive for bilateral relations and discussions on regional challenges.
The UAE said the talks covered cooperation between the two countries and recent developments in the Middle East. The discussions also focused on security, stability and efforts toward lasting peace across the region.
The Hakan Fidan UAE meeting had been planned before Netanyahu’s visit became public. Turkish officials had identified several expected topics, including preparations for the next Turkey-UAE High-Level Strategic Council meeting.
Regional security issues were also expected to feature prominently. These included the Gulf conflict, shipping security around the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb, as well as developments in Yemen, Gaza and Lebanon.
The timing of the meeting attracted attention because Netanyahu had met Sheikh Mohamed only a day earlier. Turkey and Israel have previously maintained separate diplomatic channels, including technical contacts over security concerns in Syria.
The Hakan Fidan UAE meeting therefore came amid several major regional issues involving Turkey, the UAE and Israel. The talks highlighted the UAE’s engagement with different regional governments while both sides continued discussions on bilateral relations and Middle East developments.
