WASHINGTON, Jan 4: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo thanked Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for his continued partnership and recognition of Iranian threats, State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said in a readout of a phone call between the two officials earlier on Friday. “The Secretary discussed President Trump’s recent decision to take decisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing Qasem Soleimani in response to imminent threats to American lives,” Ortagus said. “The Secretary thanked the Crown Prince for his partnership and for recognizing the continuing aggressive threats posed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force.” Pompeo also stressed to the Crown Prince that the “United States remains committed to de-escalation,” the readout said. US President Donald Trump’s decision to order an airstrike on Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ elite Quds Force, has sparked tension across the Middle East and sent thousands of Iranians to the streets mourning the death of the general and denouncing the United States and Israel. The UAE-Iranian relationship has soured over the past decade following disputes in the Strait of Hormuz and as a result of the Iran-Saudi cold war, where the UAE has backed Saudi Arabia.
(AGENCIES)
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