Qatar says de-escalation only solution to solve Iran-US crisis

atar's ruler, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, said during a visit to Iran on Sunday that de-escalation and dialogue were needed to resolve regional crises at a "sensitive" time.

He was speaking in a televised news conference with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during a visit to Tehran at a time of heightened US-Iranian tensions that threaten to destabilise the region.

In the televised news conference between Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and the visiting emir of Qatar, both sides agreed that de-escalation is the "only solution" to the regional crisis, the emirate's ruler said, according to news agency AFP.

"This visit comes at a critical time in the region. We agreed that the only solution to these crises is de-escalation from everyone and dialogue," AFP quoted Emir Shekh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.

To this, Rouhani responded: "Given the importance of security of the region... we've decided to have more consultations and cooperation for the security of the entire region."

Sheikh Tamim also thanked Iran, with which his country shares a giant gas field, for supporting Doha by providing air and land routes after Saudi Arabia and its allies imposed a trade and transport boycott on Qatar in mid-2017.