Russia’s sovereign fund opens first foreign office in Saudi ahead of Putin visit

Russia’s sovereign fund opens first foreign office in Saudi ahead of Putin visit
October 8, 2019, 3:20 pm

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin talk at the G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan in June. (File photo AP)

Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), said on Tuesday that it has opened up its first overseas office in Saudi Arabia ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s expected visit to Riyadh.

The office will carry out the fund’s activities in the Kingdom, which include ongoing deals and projects with its partners in the country, the RDIF said in a statement seen by Al Arabiya English.

“This will elevate our partnership to new levels and speaks highly for our mutual trust,” said Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).

“We expect to develop existing projects as well as to find attractive new industries for joint investments and further support the entry of our companies into each of our markets,” he said.

He added that the RDIF is the first Russian investment institution to open up an office in the Kingdom.

The fund said it’s also involved in cultural exchange between Russia and Saudi Arabia, and that the office will help boost cooperation in that regard.

Russia and Saudi Arabia have so far funded and approved bilateral projects worth $2.5 billion across several sectors, including artificial intelligence, infrastructure, transport, and medicine.

Saudi Aramco and the RDIF are also mulling projects in the oil services sector with a total investment value of over $1 billion, and in the oil and gas conversion segment worth over $2 billion.

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