Tehran, Dec 7 (IANS): The top national security officials of Iran and the UAE met in Tehran on Monday, and voiced the two countries' interest in further developing ties after years of tensions, the official news agency IRNA reported.

"Stability and lasting security will only be established through continuous dialogue and cooperation between the countries of the region," Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), said while meeting with the UAE's National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The most important priority in Iran's foreign policy, he added, is maintaining "warm and friendly" relations with its neighbours and developing exchanges with them on the basis of each other's economic, trade and investment capacities, Xinhua news agency reported.

Ties between neighbouring countries should not be affected by the "interventionist policies" of countries beyond the region, the Iranian official said.

By joining efforts, Shamkhani also said, Gulf countries can play an important role in the regional and world economy as an energy hub while creating development and prosperity for their people.

The head of Iran's SNSC voiced hope that the presence in Iran of his UAE counterpart will open a new chapter in the relations between the two countries and pave the way for the consolidation and comprehensive expansion of bilateral ties.

For his part, Al Nahyan said he was happy to be in Iran and added that the development of warm and fraternal relations between Abu Dhabi and Tehran is one of the UAE's priorities.

As reported by IRNA, the UAE official praised the potential of exchanges between Iran and the UAE in the fields of transit, energy, transportation, healthcare and investment.

It is necessary to create specialized working groups in order to accurately determine the areas of possible cooperation, and also to identify and eliminate the obstacles ahead, Al Nahyan said.

As part of his one-day visit to Tehran, it was expected that the UAE official would meet Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi later in the day.