Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is attending a summit of Arab countries in Saudi Arabia on Friday, a meeting that includes leaders either neutral toward Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or outwardly supportive of President Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskiy arrived in Jeddah aboard a French plane which took off from Poland, according to Saudi-owned Al Arabiya TV. The visit is Zelenskiy’s first to the Gulf since the start of the war in February 2022, and is a stop off on his way to the Group of Seven meetings being held in Japan.
Among the leaders in attendance is Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, who was propped up by Russian military intervention during his country’s war and remains dependent on Moscow’s support. Many Western officials and analysts have said that Putin’s decision to seize Crimea in 2014 was influenced by what he saw as inaction by Western powers in Syria, despite accusations against Assad of perpetrating atrocities against his people.
The host country Saudi Arabia, which is eager to be seen as the region’s uncontested economic and political leader, has been increasingly trying to play the role of conflict mediator. While Riyadh sees its OPEC+ alliance with Moscow as crucial for the stability of oil market prices, it has tried to strike a more balanced approach to the war in Ukraine.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan traveled to Kyiv in February, where he met with Zelenskiy and offered more than $400 million in support. Both Ukraine and its allies in Europe and the US may be looking to the oil-rich kingdom and other Gulf Arab states as a source of further funding. The Ukraine Recovery Conference will be held in London next month.
--With assistance from Kateryna Kadabashy.
