Kremlin Mulls Saudi Arabia, UAE As Possible Venues For Putin-Trump Summit

Russian officials have cited Saudi Arabia and the UAE as possible venues for a summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a Monday Reuters report.

The report comes after Trump confirmed on Sunday that his administration had "meetings and talks scheduled with various parties, including Ukraine and Russia."

Additionally, senior Russian diplomatic officials recently made trips to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but the Kremlin is reportedly concerned about hosting a meeting there, given both Gulf states' close ties to American miliary and intelligence services.

But Moscow has recently ruled out the possibility of European nations hosting such a summit, given the arrest warrant previously issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The Russian side will also seek out a more 'neutral' venue.

"Almost the entire west is involved on the side of Ukraine. Therefore, all the traditional venues where such things used to take place, like Helsinki, Geneva, and Vienna, are not suitable," Russian analyst Fyodor Lukyanov was previously quoted in TASS as saying.

But these potential Gulf venues remain a strong possibility given that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (MbZ) have generally good relations with both Presidents Putin and Zelensky. Neither country has weighed in strongly on either side of the Ukraine war.

Additionally, neither country is a member of the International Criminal Court or signatory of its Rome Statute requiring enforcement, as are many European countries. 

Interestingly, Russia has already ruled out NATO member Turkey as a potential summit venue, despite Istanbul playing a large role in the earlier Black Sea Grain Initiative, citing later failures to uphold peace, and given it is a NATO member.

President Putin had personally visited both Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the latter half of 2023, a first such Gulf tour since the invasion of Ukraine.

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Meanwhile, Zelensky has been warning that Washington must talk with Moscow about Ukraine peace with Kiev's direct participation and input in such talks. But at this point the international spotlight seems focused exclusively on whether Trump and Putin will directly engage, with or without Zelensky. The White House has indicated a meeting with Putin will likely happen 'soon'.