Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that ties with Saudi Arabia are at an "unprecedented level" as he began his meeting in Riyadh with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
In previous comments broadcast on Russian television, Putin has thanked the crown prince for his invitation and said he originally expected Mohammed bin Salman to come to Moscow, "but there were changes in plans."
He assured that the next meeting should take place in Moscow and that the two countries had good and stable relations in the political, economic and humanitarian spheres. "Nothing can prevent the development of our friendly relations," Putin told the crown prince.
The talks are expected to include discussions on the Gaza war and cooperation between the two countries in the oil producing group OPEC. "Of course, it is very important for all of us now to exchange information and assessments of what is happening in the region," Putin said.
Putin arrived in Saudi Arabia this Wednesday, in his second and final stage of a diplomatic visit aimed at discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and oil, which first took him to the United Arab Emirates.
The Russian president was received at the presidential palace in Abu Dhabi with all honors and met with his Emirati counterpart Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan.
Until now, the Russian leader limited his trips abroad because he was the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the "deportation" of Ukrainian children. In that sense, he did not participate, for example, in the latest G20 or BRICS summits (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).
At the beginning of November, he traveled to Kazakhstan. In October he was received by his ally Xi Jinping in China, on the sidelines of the New Silk Roads forum. Before his visit to Beijing, he visited Kyrgyzstan, another ally of Moscow. It was his first trip abroad since the ICC arrest warrant.
