Rouhani met Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in Tehran on Thursday.

HE welcomed close ties with the UAE and said, “Our friendship and brotherhood with the United Arab Emirates is such that no external factors can damage them,” Rouhani said.

The Iranian chief executive further praised “close cultural and economic relations” between Iran and the UAE, saying that his administration is set to enhance Tehran’s ties with Abu Dhabi in different sectors.

President Rouhani pointed to threats of “terrorism” and “extremism” in the Middle East and noted that the Islamic Republic “favors a stable and developing region.”

The Emirati top diplomat, for his part, congratulated President Rouhani on the signing of a nuclear deal between Tehran and the six world powers, saying the accord will benefit all countries in the region.

Tehran and the Sextet of world powers - the US, Britain, Russia, China, France and Germany - sealed an interim deal in Geneva on November 24 to pave the way for the full resolution of the West’s decade-old dispute with Iran over the country’s nuclear energy program.

Al Nahyan also said that his country takes pride in friendly ties between the Iranian and Emirati nations.

The Emirati foreign minister arrived in Tehran on Thursday.

SHI/SHI