Moscow — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday thanked his UAE counterpart Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for the role played by the Emirates in negotiating prisoner releases with Ukraine.
“I’d like to thank you for your role in resolving humanitarian problems, including those involving prisoner exchanges,” Putin told Sheikh Mohamed as he welcomed him to his residency near Moscow.
Moscow and Kiev on Friday announced that they had swapped 95 prisoners each following negotiations led directly by the UAE.
The two countries have exchanged hundreds of POWs since Russia launched its offensive against Ukraine in February 2022, with the various accords being mediated by the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
Sheikh Mohamed arrived on Sunday in Russia ahead of a summit of the BRICS group of emerging economies starting on Tuesday in the southwestern city of Kazan.
Putin said he would be discussing the Ukraine conflict with Sheikh Mohamed, and the two will hold a more formal bilateral meeting on Monday.
Relations between the UAE and Russia have grown closer in recent years, with Putin saying that their bilateral trade had tripled in the past three years to 10 billion euros ($11.1 billion).
“We still have a lot to do,” said the Emirati leader, according to a transcript provided by Russian news agencies.
According to the UAE’s official news agency WAM, the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan attended a special dinner hosted in his honor by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the latter’s official residence.
During the meeting, both sides engaged in friendly conversation. Sheikh Mohamed thanked President Putin for his ongoing commitment to strengthening UAE-Russian relations and wished the country and its people continued prosperity.
In turn, the Russian President welcomed Sheikh Mohamed’s visit, praising his efforts in bolstering relations between the two countries and advancing them to the level of a strategic partnership.
Putin visited the UAE in December 2023, one of his rare overseas visits since he was hit with an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court in March 2023 for the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine.
The United States has accused some UAE-based banks of helping Russia evade Western sanctions, and has threatened to punish them if they continue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in Moscow on late Sunday evening. (WAM)
According to the Russian news agency TASS, trade between Russia and the UAE has grown three-fold in the past three years, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
“All our agreements are being implemented. And our relations can be seen as a strategic partnership. In the past three years, our trade has increased by three times,” he said at a meeting with his visiting UAE counterpart, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
“Although, it has seen a decline in the first seven months of this year and this is a topic for discussion for us and the intergovernmental commission. Nevertheless, our relations are developing in all areas,” he added.
According to the Russian leader, mutual investments between Russia and the UAE reached $7 billion and sovereign funds are working on about 60 projects worth $2 billion.
The United Arab Emirates is Russia’s key trade partner in the Arab world. Russia exports to the UAE include gold, diamonds, oil products and imports from that country passenger cars, machines, and agricultural equipment, reported TASS.
Also, during the meeting with the UAE leader, Putin described the situation in the Middle East as very complicated and suggested that they discuss it.
“Of course, we will speak about the situation in the Middle East. The situation is very difficult,” he said.
The UAE president, in turn, said that he is ready to discuss the situation in the Middle East. “There are many topics and issues [that] we will discuss today. For instance, the situation in the Middle East. I hope we will discuss it in more detail today,” he said, according to TASS.
The UAE President will also attend the BRICS Summit in Kazan, which will be held from October 22 to 24. Kazan is about 900 kilometers east of Moscow, situated on the banks of the Volga and Kazanka rivers. It is the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, a semi-autonomous region, and is known for the centuries-old Kazan Kremlin, a fortified citadel containing museums and sacred sites.