Russia, Saudi not at odds over oil market, says Prince Mohammed

Saudi Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Mohammed bin Salman, who is on an official visit to Moscow, said Russia and Saudi Arabia have no contradictions over the oil market.

"There are no contradictions between Riyadh and Moscow in the oil market, our coordinated activities make it possible to stabilize the situation on global hydrocarbon markets,” Prince Mohammed said in remarks carried by the Saudi state-run news agency, SPA.

He held a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin where they discussed means to boost bilateral ties and praised their growing partnership in oil markets.

"Relations between Saudi Arabia and Russia are seeing one of their best stages at the moment," said Prince Mohammed, according to Russia’s state­run TASS news agency.

Meanwhile, Putin reiterated the importance of the mutual energy agreements, and thanked Saudi Arabia for joint efforts to stabilize the oil market, TASS added.

Agreements in the energy sphere are of high importance for both nations, Putin said at the meeting with the deputy crown prince. "We appreciate your ideas and joint work on collaborative action of OPEC and non-OPEC countries," the Russian president said.

Both sides agreed to capitalize on the support of the non-OPEC country for the Saudi oil agreement in a way that would reflect positively on the oil markets.

The two nations are sharply divided over Syria and the role of Iran in the Middle East, with Russia backing Syrian president Bashar Al Assad and maintaining friendly ties with Tehran. Riyadh views Tehran as its most dangerous enemy in the region and has actively backed the Syrian opposition.

However, the two men remained optimistic that the countries could work together.

"The two countries have a lot of points of mutual understanding. As for the points on which we have differences, a clear mechanism exists to overcome them and we are progressing at a quick pace in this respect,” Putin noted.

They also discussed means of mutual cooperation in the field of petrochemical and oil industries.

Reuters added that as a part of Tuesday's talks, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia signed a memorandum of understanding with the Russian Direct Investment Fund to explore an opportunity to join a consortium of investors in a Moscow real estate project.

The Russian fund also said in statement both parties are evaluating more projects, including in retail, real estate, alternative energy projects, transportation and logistics infrastructure.

The Saudi crown prince’s trip to Moscow comes after last week’s visit by US President Donald Trump to Riyadh in what was his first official trip abroad.

Prince Mohammed is due to head to the Azerbaijani capital of Baku this week.