JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Mohammed bin Salman met Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to discuss bilateral issues.
During the meeting Prince Mohammed told Putin that there were no contradictions between Saudi Arabia and Russia regarding the oil market and that even though a lot has been achieved there is a lot of work still to do.
Putin reiterated the importance of the energy markets for the two nations and welcomed the Kingdom for its cooperation between OPEC and non-OPEC members.
The Russian leader said that relations with Saudi Arabia are developing pretty successfully.
Moscow and Riyadh have so far backed opposing sides in the six-year war, with Saudi Arabia supporting the opposition and Russia propping up President Bashar Al Assad.
Although opposition and government negotiators have failed to reach a deal, there are hopes that foreign powers will be able to force a settlement.
Despite the failure to reach a peace deal, evacuation agreements on the ground in Syria are being carried out in some besieged areas. On Monday, more than 1,000 people left the opposition-held Barzeh neighborhood of Damascus for another opposition territory.
The Saudi crown prince’s trip to Moscow comes after last week’s visit by US President Donald Trump to Riyadh in what was his first official trip abroad.
Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is due to head to the Azerbaijani capital of Baku this week.
— With input from Reuters
