Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has postponed his scheduled visit to the United Arab Emirates after citing a reported health concern involving UAE leader Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

In a message briefly posted on X (formerly Twitter) by Erdogan’s communications team, the Turkish leader disclosed that he had spoken with the Emirati president by phone and expressed concern over his wellbeing.

“During the course of the call, President Erdogan expressed his sadness over the health problem experienced by President Al Nahyan and wished him a prompt recovery,” the statement read.

The post further noted that Erdogan’s official visit to Abu Dhabi would be rescheduled to a later date yet to be determined.

Deleted Statement Sparks Questions

Although the message was swiftly deleted, it had already been circulated by Turkish state media outlets, including reports from Turkey’s national broadcaster. Those reports were later removed as well.

Meanwhile, the UAE’s official news agency, WAM, confirmed the telephone conversation between the two leaders but did not reference any health issues or postponement of Erdogan’s visit.

As of press time, neither the Turkish presidency nor UAE authorities have issued further clarification regarding the reported health concern.

Photos Show MBZ in Apparent Good Health

Adding to the uncertainty, images released by the Emirati presidential office on Saturday showed Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, widely known as MBZ, appearing in good spirits. The photos featured him alongside Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, during what appeared to be a cordial meeting.

The contrasting developments — an initial reference to a health issue, subsequent deletion, and recent public appearances — have left observers awaiting official clarification from Abu Dhabi.