DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates is considering sending an ambassador to Iran, a senior official said Friday, six years after a downgrade in ties. UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash also called for regional economic cooperation as a means of easing political tensions.

“We are now indeed considering sending an ambassador to Iran,” Gargash said during a video call with journalists. “The next decade cannot be like the last decade. It’s a decade where ‘de-escalation’ should be the key word.” With Middle East political alignments shifting, the UAE’s talk of strengthening Iran ties comes alongside Iraqi efforts to mediate between the Emirates’ neighbour Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Riyadh and Tehran have had no diplomatic ties for six years, since Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran after the kingdom executed Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.

Riyadh responded by cutting relations with Tehran, while the UAE reduced its ties to the Islamic republic, without severing relations.

Iran and the Emirates have been on opposite sides of the war in Yemen, where the UAE supports and trains forces as part of a Saudi-led coalition against Iran-backed Huthi rebels..