Russia reaching out to enemies of Bashar al-Assad after launching airstrikes in support of Syrian president

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

Vladimir Putin has met Saudi Arabia’s defence minister in Sochi as part of a Russian effort to reach out to enemies of the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad.

The Russian president met Sheikh Mohammed bin Salman, a son of the Saudi king, on the sidelines of a Formula One race on Sunday, nearly two weeks after Moscow began bombing enemies of Assad, including rebel groups that are supported by Riyadh.

Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said after the meeting that Moscow understood Saudi concerns about Russian policy and the two countries shared the aim of preventing the establishment of a terrorist caliphate in Syria.

He said Russia was willing to increase cooperation with Saudi Arabia on Syria. “On both sides, as far as I can tell, there is an understanding that today’s meeting can advance our cooperation,” Lavrov said.