Trump’s security adviser to visit UAE this week

US National Security Adviser John Bolton will this week travel to the United Arab Emirates for talks, the US embassy in Abu Dhabi said Monday.

The US embassy in the UAE on Monday sent press invitations for a roundtable with Bolton, which would take place “this week”, but no date was given.

Bolton’s planned meeting comes as the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the US have had rising tensions with Iran, and it coincides with key meetings planned in Saudi Arabia.

Regional tensions have spiked since Donald Trump’s administration re-imposed sanctions against Iran after unilaterally pulling out of a multilateral 2015 nuclear accord signed with the Islamic republic.

Regional summits are planned on Thursday and Friday in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, as Riyadh seeks to discuss regional developments and security.

The Trump administration has ordered non-essential diplomatic staff out of Iraq, citing threats from Iranian-backed Iraqi armed groups, and sent an aircraft carrier and heavy B-52 bombers to the region.