Saudi FM pays surprise visit to Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan to Kiev on 26 February, who stressed the kingdom’s support to resolve the Ukraine-Russia war via political means.
“We in Saudi Arabia are convinced that any end of the war should be through discussions, on a negotiation table in a framework of International law and through the Charter of the United Nations to respect the sovereignty of the countries, this is why we will keep working with different parts to search for a chance of getting to such a settlement,” Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat said.
Bin Farhan is the highest-ranking kingdom official ever to visit the European country.
During his surprise visit to Kiev, the Saudi foreign minister signed an agreement and a memorandum of understanding to provide Ukraine with $410 million worth of “humanitarian assistance.”
“The Kingdom is sparing no effort to alleviate the sufferings of the Ukrainians,” the top Saudi diplomat said. “We are focused on mitigating the consequences of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. That is why the King and the Crown Prince have decided to send humanitarian aid to that country to a sum of $410 million,” he added.
This agreement is implementing a pledgemade by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) in October 2022 to Zelensky. It calls for a $100-million joint cooperation program with Kiev to provide humanitarian aid to the war-torn nation.
The agreement includes financing oil derivatives worth $300 million as a grant submitted by the Saudi Arabian government through the Saudi Fund for Development.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Saudi Arabia has maintained a neutral stance, calling for de-escalation and offering support to Kiev while maintaining its relationship with fellow OPEC+ member Moscow.
The kingdom has also expressed willingness to mediate between the conflict parties to reach a peaceful resolution.
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