President Sheikh Mohamed calls for two-state solution in talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio

UAE leader reviews developments in the Middle East during phone call

President Sheikh Mohamed spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the quest for regional peace. Photo: UAE Presidential Court / Reuters

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President Sheikh Mohamed stressed the importance of securing "just and comprehensive peace" in the Middle East during a phone call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The UAE leader underlined the need to maintain security and stability in the region, based on a two-state solution, as the Gaza ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel comes under growing pressure.

Sheikh Mohamed and Mr Rubio focused on developments in the Middle East, as well as other international issues, during the talks, state news agency Wam reported on Wednesday.

The two men also discussed ways to strengthen co-operation across various fields as part of the strategic relationship between the nations.

Mr Rubio was appointed Secretary of State in Donald Trump's White House administration last month.

The former Florida senator, who has served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is expected to be a key figure in guiding US foreign policy.

The call took place amid regional concerns over Mr Trump's vow to take over control of Gaza, which has attracted fierce opposition.

The US President on Tuesday said there was “nothing to buy” in the Gaza Strip and that the US will “take it”, reiterating his claim that Arab countries are on board with his plan to displace the Palestinian enclave's population and move them to parcels of land in Jordan, Egypt and “someplace else”.

Speaking alongside Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Mr Trump also said he did not think Hamas would honour a Saturday deadline to release the hostages it still holds, implying the conflict would reignite.

“They either have them out by Saturday at 12 o'clock or all bets are off,” Mr Trump said, shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was amassing troops inside and outside the Gaza Strip.

Yousef Al Otaiba, UAE ambassador to the US, said at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on Wednesday that the country's diplomatic path was not based on any one president or strategy. When asked about finding common ground with the Trump administration on Gaza, he said the UAE was “going to try”.

“I think the current approach is going to be difficult but, at the end of the day, we're all in the solution-seeking business," he added. "We just don't know where it's going to land yet.”