Top officials from the United States and Iran on Sunday visited Kuwait to meet with the new emir, Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who was sworn in last week.
Sheikh Nawaf succeeded his half-brother, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, a giant of Gulf diplomacy who died at the age of 91.
In a divided region, Sheikh Sabah cultivated a role as a go-between and mediator, a status illustrated by Sunday's visitors who included senior officials from archrivals Washington and Tehran.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper conveyed his condolences over the loss of the late leader in a meeting with the new emir, who also expressed concern over the health of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Sheikh Nawaf said he was glad that Trump, who has been hospitalized after being diagnosed with the coronavirus, was "recovering and well." Esper thanked him for his "expression of concern."
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif met separately with the new emir and his Kuwaiti counterpart to pay his respects.
Zarif "congratulated them on the election of the new emir of Kuwait and stressed the support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the Iranian foreign ministry said in a statement.
Dubai's ruler Sheikh M. bin Rashid l-Maktoum also visited to express his condolences, the Dubai Media Office said in a tweet.
Kuwait and the U.S. are close allies, bound by a defense agreement that expires in 2022, but the Gulf state also balances relations with regional powers Saudi Arabia and Iran.
The U.S. alliance was sealed with the Gulf War in 1991, during which a U.S.-led international coalition expelled Saddam Hussein's Iraqi troops from Kuwait after seven months of occupation.
Before arriving in Kuwait Sunday, Esper spent the night in Qatar, another U.S. ally in the oil-rich Gulf, where he discussed "the importance of the strong defense partnership" between the two countries.
Kuwait has also acted as a mediator in a diplomatic divide between Qatar and its Gulf neighbors, after Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain in 2017 imposed a blockade on Doha.
