The United Arab Emirates has clamped down on meetings between foreign diplomats and local financial institutions, highlighting rising sensitivities in a country that is both a major global investor and central to western economic pressure on Iran.
A directive sent to embassies by the ministry of foreign affairs warned that direct talks between envoys and local banks, exchanges and investment companies were “contrary to international norms” and that the ministry itself was the only approved point of contact. The central bank issued a similar warning to lenders in a separate circular.
The diktat – one of a flurry issued by the UAE government in recent months – has surprised diplomats, who see it as a sign that the country’s leadership is trying to tighten control on information as it grapples with increasing tensions over Iran and what is says is a domestic Islamist cell.
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