The Russian president Vladimir Putin will visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia this week, Russian media outlet Shot reported today, citing Putin’s adviser Yuri Usakov. The announcement of the visit follows the agreement reached last Thursday by the group of oil producing countries OPEC+ for reduction in oil production to 2.2 million barrels per day.
The reported visit comes after the OPEC+ group, which includes all three countries, agreed last Thursday to voluntary production cuts totaling approximately 2.2 million barrels per day. Markets have reacted with skepticism to the deal because it is doubtful whether the voluntary reductions will be fully implemented. Oil prices fell 2% last week after the announcement and fell further today. Brent crude was down 0.6% at $78.45 by 17:05 GMT.
The 2.2 million bpd figure includes an expansion of already existing voluntary cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia by 1.3 million bpd. According to Ushakov’s statements, quoted by the Shot, Putin will first visit the United Arab Emirates and then Saudi Arabia where he will hold talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. “I hope that the negotiations, which we consider extremely important, will be very beneficial,” Ushakov said.
Putin has rarely traveled abroad in recent years, and mainly to states of the former Soviet Union, as reported by APE-MPE. His last trip outside these countries was to China in October. In addition to cooperation in OPEC+, Putin wants to cultivate relations with the Gulf countries as part of his to build global alliances with non-western countriesin order to demonstrate what he says is the failure of the United States and its allies to isolate Russia with sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine.
Putin’s leeway to travel abroad was curtailed in March when the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against him for forcibly transporting children from Ukraine to Russia, which is considered a war crime. Russia denied the charge and called the move outrageous, but said it was legally void in any case because Russia is not a member of the ICC.
Neither Saudi Arabia nor the United Arab Emirates are members of the court, so Putin can travel to both countries without fear of being arrested under an ICC warrant.
Source: News Beast
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