Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to travel to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to discuss issues relating to the Middle East, among other topics, the Kremlin announced on Tuesday, adding that he will meet Iran’s president on his return.
According to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, the Russian leader will visit both countries on Wednesday and discuss bilateral relations and cooperation in the oil sector, as well as international and regional issues, including the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“First and foremost, however, will be the issue of bilateral relations,” Peskov stressed, noting that the discussions will be conducted within the OPEC+ format.
The president’s spokesperson also confirmed that on Thursday, Putin expects to meet in Moscow with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi. Iran’s Tasnim state news agency had previously reported that Raisi will be accompanied by a delegation of high-ranking government officials and representatives of the country’s trade and economic circles.
The Russian and Iranian presidents are expected to discuss trade, economic, and political cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, as well as regional and international issues, particularly the situation in Palestine.
Putin’s visit to the Middle East comes after the OPEC+ group, which consists of the world’s largest oil-producing countries and is led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, announced last week that it would deepen production cuts to about 2.2 million barrels per day to stabilize the global oil market.
Accounting for more than 40% of global crude production, the group decided to limit output amid worries that the market could face a potential surplus after earlier production cuts were set to expire next month.