Sheikh Mohammed meets US defence secretary Mattis
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, held talks with US Secretary of Defence James Mattis in the capital on Friday.
Sheikh Mohammed, also Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, said he discussed increasing military relations with Mr Mattis, who arrived in Abu Dhabi after a visit to Afghanistan.
The two reviewed developments in the Middle East and their countries’ co-operation and co-ordination to counter extremism and terrorism, the state news agency Wam reported.
The UAE is a key US ally in the battle against Al Qaeda in Yemen, which Washington considers the most dangerous arm of the terrorist group.
The US provides weapons, aerial refuelling and intelligence to the Saudi-led military coalition, which includes the UAE, that is fighting Iranbacked Houthi rebels in the country.
The UAE has also provided support for the US-led Nato mission in Afghanistan, where Washington is pushing for Taliban insurgents to enter peace talks.
During his visit to Kabul on Friday, Mr Mattis and the top US military officer, Gen Joseph Dunford, met President Ashraf Ghani and discussed security, parliamentary and presidential elections next month, and attempts to end corruption, the president’s spokesman said.
The visit followed deadly attacks last week that underlined the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan as it prepares to hold elections.
Mr Mattis said he was hopeful about peace talks with the Taliban.
“Right now, we have more indications that reconciliation is no longer just a shimmer, no longer just a mirage,” he said before arriving in Kabul. “It now has some framework. There’s some open lines of communication.”
The US has said a senior State Department official held talks with Taliban representatives this year to discuss the groundwork for peace talks.
The militants also observed a temporary ceasefire for Eid Al Fitr for the first time in their 17-year insurgency.
While the Taliban remains the biggest threat to security, a local branch of ISIS has been carrying out increasingly brazen attacks, including the bombing of a wrestling centre in Kabul on Wednesday that killed at least 20 people and wounded 90 others.
Mr Mattis told the Afghan leadership that the US was committed to staying in Afghanistan until the country was secure and stable.