LONDON: Iran’s president and the crown prince of Abu Dhabi discussed “efforts to ease tensions” in the region during a face-to-face meeting on Saturday.

Masoud Pezeshkian met with Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed Al-Nahyan at the BRICS Summit in New Delhi.

The two men “discussed a number of regional and international issues of mutual interest,” the Emirates News Agency reported.

“They also underscored the importance of supporting efforts to ease tensions, promote de-escalation and strengthen regional stability, while advancing opportunities for peace and development for the peoples of the region.”

The talks were a rare high-level meeting between Iran and Gulf countries since the war with the United States started earlier this year.

Iran has launched multiple attacks on the UAE and other American Gulf allies during the conflict. Tehran has also targeted Gulf shipping attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s foreign ministry said on Friday that the country would meet with Gulf states in Oman next week to discuss the strait, where an Iranian blockade has significantly reduced ship traffic since the conflict began.

However, Bahrain said on Saturday that it would not take part in the meeting until diplomatic relations between Manama and Tehran had been restored.

The Bahraini foreign ministry said Iran’s ongoing attacks across the Gulf meant that talks could not take place at this time.

Earlier, Iran and the UAE signed a joint statement from the BRICS group of nations that called for restraint in the Middle East war.