Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a phone call with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Friday to discuss bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues.

Axar.az reports, citing the Communications Directorate of the Turkish Presidency, that Erdogan said cooperation between Turkiye and the UAE would continue to grow in various areas, particularly the defense industry and the economy, adding that Ankara was working to further strengthen relations.

The Turkish president said Turkiye was working to end the Iran-U.S. tensions and similar conflicts in the region, stressing that its peace-oriented diplomatic initiatives would continue.

“We never approve of attacks on the brotherly countries in our region,” Erdogan said.

He also highlighted the importance of Turkiye-UAE cooperation on other regional issues.