Iraqi Kurdish leader helps ease Turkey-UAE tensions

Iraqi Kurdistan President Nechirvan Barzani helped facilitate a recent phone call between Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (L) shakes hands with Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan before a meeting in Ankara on Feb. 28, 2012.
Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (L) shakes hands with Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan before a meeting in Ankara on Feb. 28, 2012. - UMIT BEKTAS/AFP via Getty Images
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Amberin Zaman
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Arab Emirates (UAE) de facto ruler Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nayhan have spoken on the phone, the clearest sign yet of a thaw between the regional rivals, which was accelerated by the personal intervention of Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, Al-Monitor has learned.

A statement released by the Turkish Presidency on Tuesday said that relations "between the countries and regional issues were discussed in the talks.”

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