Putin travels to the Middle East to discuss the war between Hamas and Israel

Putin claims that Washington has chosen the path of economic aid for the Palestinians and abandoned the idea of creating a Palestinian state

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President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin walk during a meeting at Qasr Al Watan in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates December 6, 2023. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, December 6th.According to the Associated Press report, the Kremlin announced that Putin will meet with the leaders of the UAE and Saudi Arabia during his one-day trip focusing on the war between Israel and Hamas, in order to assume a new role for Russia in the Middle East.

He will host Ibrahim Raisi, president of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Moscow later this week.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday’s talks in both countries would focus on bilateral relations and the war between Israel and Hamas. He also said: “Issues related to the oil price ceiling in OPEC+ will also be on the agenda.”

Peskov also revealed that Putin will hold talks with the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Kremlin on Thursday.

According to the Associated Press, Putin’s visit to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates comes at a time when Russia is trying to promote its role as a powerful mediator in Middle East conflicts.

Putin seeks to label Israel’s war in Gaza as a failure of US diplomacy, arguing that Washington has chosen the path of economic aid to the Palestinians and has abandoned efforts to help create a Palestinian state.

He has suggested that Moscow, which holds friendly relations with both Israel and the Palestinians, could play a mediating role, saying that “no one can suspect us of supporting one side.” Moscow accuses Washington of supporting Israel in the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis.

Pro-Kremlin analyst Sergei Markov believes that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are important allies of Russia, saying that Moscow has benefited from high oil prices thanks to the OPEC+ deal it has with Riyadh, and that close ties with the UAE are a way to circumvent sanctions the West has imposed on Moscow.

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