Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia for bilateral talks with each country on Wednesday, December 6, and he is scheduled to meet with Iran’s President Raisi in Moscow on Thursday, December 7.
The three countries are all incoming members of the BRICS, and Russia assumes the chairmanship of the expanded BRICS-11 on Jan. 1, 2024. Furthermore, the three are part of what is known as OPEC+, the grouping of the oil-producing OPEC nations and Russia. Brazil (yet another BRICS country) last week announced that they will be joining OPEC+ in 2024. OPEC+ already controls over 40% of world oil production, and that was one of the main topics on the agenda of Putin’s discussions with the three Southwest Asian heads of state. Another was the crisis in Gaza, as well as the war in Ukraine. Partial transcriptions of the Russian President’s dialogue with respectively, U.A.E. President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Saudi Prime Minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud are posted to the Kremlin website.
Putin’s plane was escorted by four Russian Sukhoi Su-35S fighter jets, and he was received in U.A.E. with much pomp and circumstance. An official welcoming ceremony for the Russian President was hosted by the U.A.E. President at the Qasr Al Watan Palace.
According to the Kremlin site, the agenda in Abu Dhabi included the current state of multifaceted Russia-U.A.E. cooperation and prospects for the further expansion of ties, as well as the situation in the Middle East. Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov told reporters in Abu Dhabi: “After the official meeting at the airport and the meeting at the palace, there will be talks between the delegations. Afterwards, there will be a one-on-one dialogue between Putin and Mohammed Al Nahyan.”
