Putin makes a rare visit to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to discuss relations

Dubai, United Arab Emirates – Russian state media said Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Abu Dhabi for “working visits” in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia later in the day.

These are his first trips to the Middle East since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022.

Both countries are major trading partners of Russia, have remained neutral in the Ukrainian conflict, and have refused to adopt Western-led sanctions against the country over its invasion of Ukraine. Putin has made very few trips outside Russia’s borders in recent months, and these visits highlight the importance of the oil-rich Gulf Arab states in the Kremlin’s international relations.

Putin is scheduled to meet in Abu Dhabi with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and “is expected to review the current situation of multifaceted bilateral cooperation and prospects for further expanding relations, as well as current international issues, with a focus on the situation in the Middle East,” according to a Kremlin statement. .

The Russian leader will then meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh “to discuss bilateral cooperation in the trade, economic and investment fields” as well as “exchange views on the regional and international agenda,” the statement said.

These visits will be followed by Putin hosting Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Moscow on Thursday. The importance of the Kremlin’s alliance with Iran has increased dramatically, as Tehran has become a major trading partner and supplier of weapons that Russia deploys in Ukraine.

Energy is likely to be central to discussions between Putin and Middle Eastern leaders, especially after last week’s OPEC+ meeting during which Russia, Saudi Arabia and other members of the alliance of oil producers agreed to voluntary production cuts for the first quarter of 2024.

Abu Dhabi and Moscow have grown closer since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, at least in terms of trade: Total trade between Russia and the UAE has increased nearly 68% year-on-year to reach $9 billion in 2022, according to Russian state news agency TASS. Russian exports to the UAE represented $8.5 million of this total.

In February 2023, the Russian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Sergei Kozlov, pledged to raise Russian-Saudi bilateral trade to $5 billion annually, Middle East Briefing reports. This figure was $1.75 billion in 2022, but trade in sectors such as agriculture, fertilizers and energy goods has increased significantly, according to Russian economic analysts.

Putin’s travels abroad have been severely limited due to the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against him for alleged war crimes. It is worth noting that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have not ratified the statute governing the International Criminal Court, which means that they are not obligated to arrest the Russian leader on their territory.