President of Russia Vladimir Putin held talks with President of the United Arab Emirates Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in the Kremlin (Moscow, January 28, 2026)
Vladimir Putin: This year marks 55 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countris.
We highly value your significant personal contribution to advancing the full spectrum of the Russia-UAE strategic partnership, which is comprehensive, mutually beneficial and developing dynamically.
Political dialogue has been established at the level of governments, parliaments, ministries and agencies, as well as the business community. Productive cooperation is also under way within multilateral formats – from the UN to other mechanism, which are relevant and effective.
The UAE is an important trading partner for Russia in the Arab world. Bilateral trade continues to grow and develop steadily. The intergovernmental commission is operating well – its meeting was held a month ago in Dubai. The first Russia-UAE Business Forum also took place there. Investment cooperation is at a solid level – Russian Direct Investment Fund and Mubadala Investment Company have implemented over 60 joint projects.
Cooperation in technology and industry is of an advanced nature. Yandex – our high-tech company – is expanding its services on the Emirati market. There are a number of flagship initiatives in the energy sector.
Humanitarian ties have traditionally received special attention. Russian Culture Days were held in the UAE in November. The number of Russian tourists visiting your country continues to rise annually – in the first nine months of 2025 it reached 1.5 million, an 18% increase.
Cooperation in education and science is developing steadily. A centre for cooperation with the UAE operates at the Primakov School near Moscow, which we visited together in 2024. Branches of this School, as well as of Plekhanov University, are operating in the UAE. Plans are under way to establish a Russian university and a youth science park under the auspices of the Sirius centre.
We congratulate you on the successful hosting in Abu Dhabi in December of the second international multi-sport tournament, Games of the Future, and thank you for supporting this Russian initiative. Our two countries cooperated closely in preparing these competitions.
Coordination on pressing international issues is ongoing, with our approaches largely aligned.
I would particularly like to note the efforts of the Emirati Side in the context of the Ukrainian crisis, including its contribution to exchanges of detained persons and its facilitation of contacts in various formats on the territory of the UAE.
We greatly appreciate this, Your Highness. We are grateful to you personally for ensuring the three-party negotiations held in Abu Dhabi last week within the framework of the security working group, as well as for the attention you paid to our delegation.
Our dialogue on developments in the Middle East also remains highly relevant. We have repeatedly discussed the situation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict zone and our joint efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
A principled issue, of course, is the establishment of a full-fledged Palestinian State that would coexist in peace and security with Israel. This alone would make it possible to achieve a sustainable settlement and ensure long-term stability in the region. We are also closely following developments on the Iranian track.
In August 2025, we held substantive talks here in the Kremlin, during which we reviewed key aspects of Russia-UAE cooperation and outlined plans for its further development.
