DOHA (Reuters) – Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Tuesday that his country was ready to engage in dialogue with Gulf Arab countries in order to address escalating tensions in the region.
Araqchi met Qatar Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani in Doha, where the two sides “expressed their concern about escalations and problems in the region”, a Qatar Foreign Ministry statement said.
Tensions have risen between Iran on one side and the United States and its Gulf allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on the other. Washington has deployed a carrier strike group and bombers and announced plans to deploy 1,500 troops to the Middle East, prompting fears of a conflict.
(Reporting by Hesham Hejali; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Alison Williams)