Russia, Arab League to hold summit this year: Putin
Published : Wednesday, 23 April, 2025 at 12:00 AM Count : 371
MOSCOW, Apr 22:
Russian President Vladimir Putin Tuesday announced plans to stage a
summit with the Arab League group of states later this year as Moscow
searches for new partners after its three-year offensive on Ukraine.
Slapped
with sweeping Western sanctions after sending troops into Ukraine,
Russia has turned towards Asian, African and Arab countries for
political and economic ties.
"We plan to hold a summit between Russia
and Arab countries this year," Putin told Sultan of Oman Haitham bin
Tariq, in the first-ever visit to Russia by an Omani head of state.
"Many
of our friends in the Arab world support this idea," he added, inviting
bin Tariq to the summit, without specifying the date and location.
The
Sultan's visit comes days after Putin hosted Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim
bin Hamad Al-Thani in Moscow for talks on Syria and Gaza. Doha is a key
mediator between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.
The
Gulf states are gaining ever-growing diplomatic influence as mediators
in negotiations to resolve the world's most pressing crises, which have
claimed thousands of lives, such as the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
Oman
recently hosted talks between the United States and Iran, the
highest-level meeting between the two sides since Donald Trump abandoned
a landmark nuclear deal in 2018 during his first term as US
president. �"AFP
