RIYADH, Dec  6, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived
in Saudi Arabia Wednesday after visiting the United Arab Emirates, making a
rare trip abroad as Moscow seeks to reassert itself on the global stage.
       It is only the third trip the Russian leader has taken outside the former
Soviet Union since he invaded Ukraine, following visits to Iran and China, and
comes as Moscow seeks to bolster its influence in the Middle East.
       Putin was greeted by a number of Saudi officials after landing in the
capital Riyadh, footage from the Kremlin showed.
       He was set to meet the country's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman, for talks on international politics, the Israel-Hamas war and oil
markets, state media reported.
       The Kremlin emphasised the "great importance of maintaining dialogue with
the Kingdom to preserve peace and security in the Middle East and North Africa."
       The two leaders will "consider ways to promote de-escalation" in the war in
Gaza, it added.
       Since March, Putin has been wanted for war crimes by the International
Criminal Court (ICC) over the invasion of Ukraine.
       He skipped the BRICS summit in August in South Africa, which recognises the
ICC, to avoid causing a "political show", and missed the G20 summit in India in
September.
       But neither the UAE nor Saudi Arabia have signed the ICC's founding treaty,
meaning they are not obliged to arrest him.
       
       - 'Unprecedented relations' -
       
       The Russian leader was earlier welcomed with full cavalry escort and
motorcade in the UAE, where he met President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
       A national air show team drew a Russian flag with coloured fumes in the sky.
       "Today, thanks to your posture, our relations have reached unprecedented
levels," Putin told his counterpart at the presidential palace, saying the UAE
was "Russia's main trading partner in the Arab world."
       Bilateral trade hit a record $9 billion last year, according to the
Kremlin, and Putin said "a number of projects" were underway in the oil and gas
sector.
       The UAE is currently hosting the COP28 UN climate talks, but the Kremlin
did not specify whether Putin attended any related events.
       Putin is next set to host Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi for talks in
Moscow on Thursday, as the two countries strengthen economic and military ties
in the face of Western sanctions.
       With Moscow largely adapted to Western sanctions thanks to rebounding oil
revenues, and its military fending off a Ukrainian counteroffensive in recent
months, analysts say Putin may be sensing reviving fortunes.
       "Putin has certainly been speaking more confidently now than any time since
the war began," said Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow at the International
Institute for Strategic Studies.