Putin re-energises Russia’s Mid-East Gulf ties
The deals thus far are mostly modest, but the Russian president’s Gulf visit laid the ground for wider cooperation
Vladimir Putin’s state visits in October to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) left a trail of energy deals in their wake. And while many of the agreement are tentative or small-scale at present, they clearly represent the increased Russian appetite to up its profile in the region. In Saudi Arabia, it was largely a case of reinvigorating earlier cooperation pledges. During King Salman’s visit to Moscow in 2017, state-owned Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Public Investment Fund and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) agreed to create a platform for investment in Russia’s energy services sector—widely interpreted as a quid pro quo for Moscow’s support for Saudi-led global oil pro
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