The United Arab Emirates on Sunday called for negotiations to defuse tensions between the United States and Iran after Tehran shot down a US drone.

“Tensions in the Gulf can only be addressed politically,” Anwar Gargash, UAE minister of state for foreign affairs, wrote on Twitter.

He said the crisis in the Gulf region “requires collective attention, primarily to de-escalate and to find political solutions through dialogue and negotiations.”

“Regional voices (are) important to achieve sustainable solutions,” said Gargash.

Tehran on Thursday shot down a US surveillance drone which it said entered Iranian airspace, a claim denied by Washington which said the aircraft was above international waters.

The United States launched cyberattacks against Iranian missile control systems and a spy network in retaliation for the drone incident, according to US media reports Saturday.

Tehran is yet to react to the reports published by The Washington Post and Yahoo News.

US President Donald Trump said Friday he had called off strikes against Iran at the last minute, as such an attack would not have been a “proportionate” response.

-AFP