Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud

📌 For this one we do not need the full transcript as the most important for our purposes is what FM Lavrov said vis a vis Yemen.   The links are there for those who want to dive in, in detail.  This is important as both Pakistan and Türkiye announced in the past number of hours that should Yemen continue attacks on Saudi Arabia, they may have to consider their version of Article 5 in their joint defense agreement.  This is a threat from desperate middle countries that want their oil trade back with ribbons tied around it.  They will feed Iran to the sharks if they could.    More details in the War Thread.  Frequently stated, I have no respect for, or trust in this tri-partite agreement, although FM Lavrov considered it positive and suggested that other countries should join.  I listened to the Joint Press Conference and could not put my finger on what exactly Russia thinks about AnsarAllah’s actions, besides that those waters need to be free of war and the only way out is inclusive national dialogue involving all of the country’s political forces under UN auspices.  Generally vanilla commentary straight down the diplomacy line, spiced up with Russia’s concept of Collective Security in the Gulf.

—

🇷🇺🇸🇦 On September 8, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud held talks in Moscow.

👉 Opening remarks by Sergey Lavrov
👉 Joint press conference of the Ministers

The Foreign Ministers spoke in favour of maintaining regular political dialogue and expanding exchanges of delegations. They stressed the need to deepen business cooperation in order to ensure sustained positive momentum in bilateral trade.

❗️ The Ministers conducted a thorough exchange of views on key international and regional issues. Priority attention was given to the escalation of tensions in the Persian Gulf as a result of US-Israeli aggression against Iran.

Sergey Lavrov briefed his Saudi counterpart in detail on the updated Russian Concept of Collective Security in the Persian Gulf. He reaffirmed Russia’s readiness for constructive engagement with all interested parties with a view to building a comprehensive security architecture and promoting interstate cooperation in this strategically important region.

The Ministers expressed mutual concern over rising tensions in the south of the Arabian Peninsula and in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. They noted that the path towards lasting stabilisation in Yemen lies through strict observance of the ceasefire and the earliest possible launch of an inclusive national dialogue involving all of the country’s political forces under UN auspices.

The Sides expressed a shared position in support of preserving Syria’s unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty. They reaffirmed the need to consolidate international efforts in support of its post-conflict recovery.

Sergey Lavrov outlined Russia’s assessments of the evolving geopolitical situation, including the situation in Ukraine. He reaffirmed Russia’s commitment to a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, which can only be achieved through the complete and irreversible elimination of its root causes.