Almost every day, Ukrainian cities are attacked by Iranian "

With their help, the Russians, lacking modern weapons, seek to destroy critical infrastructure, sow panic among Ukrainians, reveal our air defense systems.. Therefore, one of the goals of Kyiv is to prevent the supply of drones and other weapons by Iran to Russia.. And if this fails, then at least significantly complicate Russian-Iranian military-technical cooperation, forcing Tehran to pay a high price for an alliance with Moscow.

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To achieve this goal, Ukraine needs the help of not only the United States, but also the countries of the Middle East.. We are talking about both Israel and the Gulf monarchies, concerned about the growing regional ambitions of Iran and its military potential.. The arrival of Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud in Kyiv fits into Ukraine's strategy to create an informal alliance to counter Iran, which has been worked on in recent months.

According to one informed ZN interlocutor. UA, " But with Saudi Arabia, things were more complicated..

Riyadh has been vying with Tehran for dominance in the Middle East for decades. Rivalry is expressed either in the confrontation of proxy forces (as is happening in Syria and Yemen), or in the form of direct attacks (as happened in 2019, when Iranian drones attacked the facilities of the Saudi oil company Saudi Aramco). Last fall, Riyadh even feared that the Islamic Republic might attack the Kingdom in order to divert the attention of Iranians from large-scale anti-government protests..

With such a confrontation, it is not surprising that the strengthening of Iran's military power at the expense of Russian capabilities, which upsets the balance in the region, is causing concern in the House of Saud.. After all, the Islamic Republic, in exchange for the supply of weapons to the Russian Federation, receives aircraft and assistance in the development of its nuclear program.. Therefore, one of the foreign policy goals of Saudi Arabia is to reduce the military-technical cooperation between Iran and Russia..

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This is where the interests of Kyiv and Riyadh coincide. And if the Saudis are interested in Ukrainian experience in countering Iranian drones, then Ukrainians are interested in intelligence information about Iranian-Russian military cooperation.

In the meantime, Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud's visit to Kyiv is just a signal sent by Riyadh to Moscow. But this signal is strengthened by the provision of $400 million in aid to Ukraine.. : humanitarian - by 100 million and oil products - by 300 million. As well as Saudi Arabia’s support at the UN General Assembly of a resolution on the need to achieve a “comprehensive, just and lasting” peace in Ukraine as soon as possible, which refers, among other things, to the territorial integrity of our country and calls on Russia to withdraw its troops.

Signal in Moscow noticed.

Commenting on the visit of the head of the Saudi Foreign Ministry, the Russian media write that this trip " And at the same time, they note that Russia should be prepared for the fact that “in the event of further growth of dissatisfaction among the Saudi rulers with the Russian-Iranian rapprochement, Riyadh may adjust its policy”.

Although the Ukrainian Telegram channels affiliated with the OP write about the presence of laser systems in Riyadh capable of shooting down Iranian drones, it is unlikely that Saudi Arabia will supply us with a Silent Hunter. Against the backdrop of growing threats from the Islamic Republic, the Kingdom itself needs the supply of military equipment and ammunition. But if the Saudis begin to provide our country with some kind of weapons, this will happen secretly and through third parties..

Kyiv's interest in cooperation with Riyadh is not limited to the desire to jointly counter the Iranian threat. Saudi Arabia and Russia, one of the largest oil exporters, are linked by interests in the energy market, which in turn form a special relationship between Riyadh and Moscow.. They are reinforced by the personal relationship between the leaders of the two countries: experts also talk about the sympathy of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for Putin.

This creates a unique channel of dialogue with the Kremlin. Kyiv once used the possibilities of the house of Saud when, through its mediation, an exchange of prisoners of war took place, during which ten foreign citizens were released. Saudi platform for holding closed talks on the release of Ukrainians in the OP is going to be used further.

Until recently, Saudi Arabia maintained a certain balance in relations with Russia and Ukraine.. But the arrival of Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud demonstrates a major shift in Riyadh's policy towards Kyiv.. After all, this is the first visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom in the thirty years of the existence of diplomatic relations between our states.. (As well as, in general, the first visit to Kyiv by a representative of an Arab state since the large-scale invasion of Russians into our country.

Undoubtedly, Iranian-Russian military-technical cooperation played a role in this reassessment of the role of our country.. But Joe Biden's visit to the Ukrainian capital also played an equally important role: American presidents don't go to losers. It is quite possible that behind this trip the heads of the White House in Riyadh saw both the prospect of Ukraine's victory and the opportunity to participate in its post-war reconstruction..

The financial resources of the monarchy, accumulated through oil exports, make Saudi Arabia one of the largest investors. Before the large-scale invasion, the Saudis had already invested in Ukrainian agriculture. They are also interested in Ukrainian economic and energy potential. According to ZN. UA, during the negotiations of the Ukrainian side with Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, the future of the oil refining industry of Ukraine was also discussed.

In addition, the Saudis also raised the issue of holding Expo 2030..

Among the contenders for the World Expo are Riyadh, Odessa, Busan, Rome. The Saudis are interested in Ukraine withdrawing its candidacy and supporting the Saudi application. And here Kyiv has scope for cooperation with Riyadh.

In general, in Kyiv, the visit is assessed as very successful.. And they hope that it will influence the position of other Arab countries by increasing their political, diplomatic and financial support to Ukraine..

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