UAE President Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan met Tuesday with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and reiterated his country’s readiness to mediate contacts between Russia and Ukraine, the Emirati news agency WAM reported.

During their meeting, Putin expressed Russia's appreciation for the UAE's efforts, noting that they are "a testament to its readiness to support mediation efforts."

The Russian President also briefed Al Nahyan on the situation at the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and on Russia's efforts to maintain nuclear security, indicating that Moscow is keen on the continuation of Abu Dhabi's mediation efforts.

On his part, Al Nahyan briefed Putin on the Ukrainian side's position on a number of issues, saying that the UAE is continuing to monitor the situation at the ZNPP. The Emirati President also stressed the need to keep the dialogue between Russia and Ukraine open.

According to the Emirati news agency, the two leaders discussed the bilateral ties between their countries and underscored the ongoing rapid growth of UAE-Russia relations and their satisfaction with such growth.

During the meeting, the UAE President highlighted that the trade turnover between his country and Russia has increased from $2.5 billion to $5 billion at present, noting that the number of Russian tourists visiting the UAE has reached 500,000, while 4,000 Russian companies are currently operating in the oil-rich Gulf country.

This comes a couple of weeks after German multinational energy company RWE struck an agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to provide Europe's largest economy with liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the end of December.

After Germany was heavily dependent on Russia for gas, it has been looking to diversify its energy supply since the war started in Ukraine, and the consecutive sanctions against Moscow prompted a race against the clock to diminish the country's reliance on Russian gas before winter.

The announcement came on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's trip to the Gulf region in the hope of sealing new energy deals to replace Russian supplies and mitigate the energy crisis. Al Nahyan signed a deal with Scholz that covers boosting industrial growth and energy security.  

The UAE has not participated in imposing sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine. It is noteworthy that Al-Nahyan acknowledged on March 1 Russia’s right to protect its national security during a phone conversation with Putin.

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