Recent diplomatic visits indicate imminent changes in the global economy.
Several significant events occurred a few days ago, each important individually but particularly so when viewed collectively against the backdrop of global political and economic processes. The diplomatic visit of Vladimir Putin to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia remained at the forefront of the news agenda for a long time, primarily due to the reception accorded to our president. The fact that both countries allowed Russian fighter jets to enter their airspace without escort or visible control was noteworthy. This was an unprecedented situation for the Persian Gulf countries.
The main components of the diplomatic visit undoubtedly became Vladimir Putin’s personal negotiations with the President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.
The third significant meeting took place the following day when the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, visited Moscow. Such active negotiating activity likely indicates a transition in the cooperation among these four countries to a new level, including in the sphere of energy resource trading. The specifics of the agreements reached during the negotiations remain a matter of speculation. However, it can be assumed that the discussions also revolved around the terms of new participants joining BRICS.
Back in August, following the XV BRICS Summit, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that energy cooperation would ‘gain new facets’ with Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE joining BRICS.
‘In today’s reality, a new oil or even broader energy alliance is emerging. And it is quite possible that the influence of the traditional West, primarily the United States, will be quite limited,’ Boris Alexandrovich Podoprigora, a political scientist, writer, publicist, and president of the St. Petersburg Club of Conflict Mediators, told “Gazeta o Rossii” (‘Gazette about Russia’). ‘This does not mean that the USA will become a sort of victim. It’s unlikely we will live to see that, as the US energy sector will undoubtedly require a change in today’s discourse at some point. But for now, the situation is such that the potential alliance of Russia, Iran, and its Sunni neighbors in the form of Saudi Arabia and the Emirates is clearly flexing its muscles. That’s the truth.’