UAE, Russia in $5 billion investment deal

Gen. Shaikh Mohammed shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence, outside Moscow, on Thursday. — Wam

A memorandum of intent to establish a partnership between the Department of Finance (DoF) in Abu Dhabi and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) for investment in Russian infrastructure projects was signed at the Kremlin on the sidelines of a meeting between General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Gen Shaikh Mohammed and Putin discussed bilateral relations, expansion and diversification of economic partnerships and investment opportunities.

The discussions took place as Putin received Gen Shaikh Mohammed at Novo-Ogaryovo, the state residence of the Russian President. Putin welcomed the UAE leader and expressed his pleasure at meeting him and discussing matters of common interest.

Gen Shaikh Mohammed conveyed to Putin greetings from the UAE President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and his best wishes for further progress and prosperity for the people of Russia.

The meeting, which was attended by Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, also discussed developments in the Arab Gulf region and the Middle East. Following the meeting, Putin held a lunch banquet in honour of Gen Shaikh Mohammed and his accompanying delegation.

The investment accord was signed by Hamad Mohammed Al Hur Al Suwaidi, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Finance Department, and RDIF chief executive Kirill Dmitriev. Speaking on the occasion, Al Suwaidi said: “The signing of the memorandum and our commitment to an investment of up to five billion dollars reflect our confidence of returns that can be derived from this investment. We expect a very fruitful partnership through the exchange of expertise with the RDIF.” The investment project aims to open new avenues for joint cooperation that would contribute to the strengthening of bilateral relations. The structure and governance of the joint project and other conditions will be concluded before the end of the year.