PHOTOS: Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed arrives in Russia

Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Russian President Putin hold bilateral talks.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, arrived in Russia today (March 24) on an official visit.
He was received by President Vladimir Putin. Both leaders discussed bilateral relations and co-operation between the two countries.
They also tackled the overall regional and international issues of mutual interests.
Putin welcomed Shaikh Mohammed, expressing his happiness at again meeting with him to discuss bilateral relations and Middle East issues.
At their meeting, the Russian President said,'' I welcome you to Moscow. There are important ties between our two countries and we are exerting efforts to enhance them to the highest levels."
He added, "there is a joint committee which works to enhance economic relations in all areas, and I believe that it will make a positive contribution. Of course, it is very important for us to invest in this cooperation and I know that there are many promising plans in this area."
Putin also confirmed that the visit came at an important time to discuss developments in the region, noting, ''I am happy to receive our friends in Moscow."
For his part, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi expressed his happiness at being in Moscow to discuss with the Russian President ways to boost bilateral relations and to conduct consultations regarding a number of regional and international issues of mutual interest.
Also, Shaikh Mohamed conveyed his greetings from President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his wishes for further progress and the general welfare in all fields for the Russian people.
Shaikh Mohamed noted, '' I am happy to be in Moscow and we hope to develop trade exchanges and will discuss the best ways to enhance this approach. We are happy to discuss issues about the Middle East, as Russia plays an important and vital role in the region, and we hope to further develop our ties, which would contribute to making the Middle East region more stable and secure."
The Russian President also asked Shaikh Mohamed to reciprocate his greetings to President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed and wished the friendly people of the UAE would see further development, progress and improved welfare.
Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed condoles flydubai crash
Additionally, Shaikh Mohamed expressed his regret over the flydubai plane that crashed while landing in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don last Saturday. He also extended his heartfelt condolences to the Russian President, the friendly people of Russia and families of the victims of the tragic incident.
During the meeting, they also reviewed bilateral relations and ways to develop them, in light of the distinguished bonds of friendship and growing co-operation between the two countries. The two sides also tackled ways to bolster the existing co-operation between the UAE and Russia in the economic, investment and trade sectors, in the best interests of the two friendly peoples and countries, in a bid to meet the aspirations of the leaderships of the two countries, as well as to open wider horizons of ties and economic partnerships in the future.
Shaikh Mohamed and President Putin also reviewed the latest developments in regional and global arenas, especially the Syrian crisis, fighting terrorist organisations and the situation in the Middle East.
They also pointed to the terrorist bombings that took place last Tuesday in Brussels, leading to casualties among innocent civilians, expressing their condemnation of this terrorist act. They stressed the importance of cooperation, and pledged to unite and exert more efforts aimed at ridding the world of terrorism and extended their condolences to the Government of Belgium and its people, while wishing a speedy recovery to the injured.
Among those who attended the meeting were government officials and dignitaries.