Zelensky visits Saudi Arabia again in less than a month

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed met with visiting Ukrainian President Zelensky in Jeddah, a city in western Saudi Arabia, to discuss cooperation in key areas between the two countries. This is Zelensky’s second visit to Saudi Arabia within 30 days. According to the Saudi Press Agency, the two sides discussed bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields during the meeting, as well as regional and international situations, especially the latest developments in the Middle East and the Ukraine crisis. On the same day, Zelensky posted on social media saying he had a “productive meeting” with the Saudi Crown Prince and praised the constructive cooperation between the two countries. Zelensky stated that Ukraine and Saudi Arabia are actively promoting a strategic security arrangement covering three key areas: exporting Ukraine’s experience and capabilities in air defense to Saudi Arabia, energy cooperation, and food security. After the large-scale military operations launched by the United States and Israel against Iran at the end of February, Iran retaliated against targets including Israel and U.S. military bases in the Middle East, affecting Gulf countries. Zelensky then proposed that Ukraine is willing to assist Gulf countries in intercepting drones. On March 26, after visiting Saudi Arabia, Zelensky announced that Ukraine and Saudi Arabia had reached a defense cooperation agreement. (Xinhua News Agency)