Salman and Putin underline importance of bilateral cooperation

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud stressed Thursday the importance of bilateral cooperation between his country and Russia during a historic summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow.

In a speech delivered during official talks held with Putin in the Russian capital, King Salman said: “We are confident that there are vast opportunities for expanding and diversifying economic cooperation between our countries and establishing an economic, commercial and investment base in order to increase exploitation and consolidate the relative advantages in the interest of the two countries.”

For his part, Putin highlighted the importance of the King’s visit to Russia and the talks made between the two sides, describing them as rich and trustworthy. “I am confident that the visit will give a fresh impetus to the development of bilateral relations between the two countries,” Putin said.

In Russia, King Salman also called on Iran to “stop interference in the region’s affairs and destabilizing the region,” stressing that the security and stability of the Gulf region and the Middle East are an absolute necessity for achieving international security and stability.

The King concluded his speech by officially inviting the Russian president to visit the Kingdom and to continue consultations towards the issues of common interest and enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries in all fields.

The Saudi-Russian Summit saw the signing of a number of memorandums of understanding and joint investment deals worth several billion dollars for the establishment of Saudi-Russian platforms in the fields of military, energy, space, commerce, communication, technology, culture and investment.

Meanwhile, during a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir said that Saudi Arabia and Russia agree on the need to preserve Syria’s territorial integrity and state institutions.

The Saudi foreign minister also uncovered that his country is working closely with Russia on uniting Syria’s opposition. “We are certain that the further strengthening of Russian-Saudi relations will have a positive impact on strengthening stability and security in the region and the world,” Al-Jubeir said.