Iranian president, Abu Dhabi crown prince meet on sidelines of Brics summit in India

Leaders come face to face for first time since frictions intensified sharply after Iran hit back at US allies following US-Israeli strikes

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi met on the sidelines of the Brics summit in New Delhi on Saturday, marking the highest-level meeting between the two sides since the Iran war began.

The meeting, confirmed by the Iranian embassy in New Delhi, brought the Iran and UAE leaders face to face months after bilateral frictions intensified sharply in late February, as US-Israeli strikes saw Tehran hit back at American allies in the region.

Retaliatory strikes across the Gulf region saw Iran launch sustained ballistic missile and drone attacks against the United Arab Emirates that damaged energy infrastructure, ports and commercial facilities across Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Relations reached a breaking point last month after two Iranian ballistic missiles splashed down in waters near the UAE coastline, prompting Abu Dhabi to enact a comprehensive, indefinite embargo.

The UAE suspended all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran, cutting off the banking and transshipment channels that Tehran has historically relied upon to bypass international isolation.

As Iran’s second-largest trading partner after China, the UAE has long been an indispensable commercial hub for the Iranian economy, providing roughly 30 per cent of its imports and access to foreign currency, banking networks, and global shipping.