Vladimir Putin
The Kremlin announced that President Vladimir Putin will go to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday, as Moscow seeks supporters abroad despite its isolation as a result of the Ukraine conflict.
Putin has limited his overseas travel since deploying troops to Ukraine, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an international arrest warrant for Putin on the war crime charge of unlawfully deporting Ukrainian children.
Today, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “President Putin will go on a working visit to the UAE and Saudi Arabia tomorrow”.
Peskov went on to say that the Russian president would discuss bilateral relations, the Israel-Hamas conflict, and international politics.
The COP28 UN climate meetings are being held in the United Arab Emirates, but the Kremlin has not said if Putin would attend any related events.
Putin has been absent from several high-level international gatherings since Moscow initiated large-scale hostilities in Ukraine in February 2022.
To avoid a political show, Putin skipped the BRICS summit in South Africa in August.
Putin also missed the in-person flagship G20 summit in September, while he did attend a virtual G20 meeting in November.
Putin has been wanted by the ICC since March, and member states are required to honor the warrant if the Russian leader enters their country.
Neither the UAE nor Saudi Arabia have joined the founding treaty of the ICC.
Vladimir Putin paid his first visit outside the former Soviet Union this year to China in October.
Several days before, Putin flew to ex-Soviet Kyrgyzstan on his first international trip since the ICC issued its warrant.
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