WASHINGTON , Feb 17 (MENA) - US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth discussed over the phone with his UAE counterpart Mohammed bin Mubarak al-Mazrouei regional issues as well as strengthening bilateral defense partnership.

In a statement published by the US Department of Defense Monday, Pentagon spokesman John Ullyot said, the two ministers discussed coordination on common security issues, including cooperation in the field of defense industries and agreed to continue communication over the coming months.

Hegseth had previously discussed with his Saudi counterpart Prince Khalid bin Salman US-Saudi ties, as well as aspects of strategic defense cooperation, the statement said.

The US Secretary of Defense welcomed Saudi Arabia’s contributions to regional security and confirmed that he agreed with the Saudi side to continue close coordination. (MENA)

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