Putin meets Saudi King Salman; gifts Gyrfalcon & seals key oil deals

Vladimir Putin signed a key deal with Saudi King Salman to bolster cooperation among the world's oil giants- Russia and Saudi Arabia, as the Russian President sought to defuse political tensions in the Gulf. Russian President Putin, who has backed the arch-foe of the Kingdom, Iran, explicitly condemned Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen and supported Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country's civil war, visited the Middle Eastern country after his last visit in 2007. On his arrival, Putin's limousine was escorted with heavy security to King Salman's Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh. At the palace, the Saudi military orchestra played the Russian national anthem for the guest. 

In a statement during his visit, Putin heaped praises for King Salman's efforts for maintaining relations. "Russia sees the expansion of friendly and mutually beneficial ties with Saudi Arabia as particularly important," Putin said. In response to which King Salman said, "We look forward to working with Russia to achieve security and stability and fight terrorism."

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Despite the geopolitical hostilities and Saudi Arabia is a traditional US ally, Russian President Putin and Mohammed bin Salman's bonhomie has been visible at international summits, especially with the iconic handshake between the two leaders at the G20 Summit at Buenos Aires when the Crown Prince was under international scrutiny over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. 

During Putin's visit, he gifted the Saudi king with a Russian female Gyrfalcon during his official visit and the Saudi King gifted a painting to the Russian President. 

Deals between Saudi Arabia-Russia 

At a ceremony in Riyadh, Putin and his host, Saudi King Salman, penned a string of multi-million-dollar investment contracts targeting the aerospace, culture, health, advanced technology and agriculture sectors. Key among the deals was the agreement to bolster cooperation among the so-called OPEC+ countries -- the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus 10 non-members of the cartel.

Moscow is not a member of OPEC, but it has worked closely with the group to limit supply and push up prices after a 2014 slump that wreaked havoc on the economies of Russia and cartel heavyweight Saudi Arabia. Monday's deal seeks to "reinforce cooperation ... and strengthen oil market stability", Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said at the signing ceremony.

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(With PTI inputs)