Prince Faisal of Saudi Arabia visits President Zelenskyy of Ukraine in Kiev

(MENAFN) Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Kyiv on Sunday and met with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as holding a press conference with Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba. The visit comes at a time when Saudi Arabia has established strong ties with both Kyiv and Moscow, having pledged USD400 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine in October. During his visit, Prince Faisal declared that his country is continuing to discuss opportunities to settle the crisis with all parties involved. After the meeting, both countries signed a memorandum of understanding, which is said to be worth USD400 million. According to Ukraine's foreign ministry, the two sides discussed a range of issues on the bilateral and regional agenda and agreed to effectively streamline the engagement of small and medium businesses from Ukraine and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia has played a significant role in negotiating prisoner exchanges during the conflict, having helped secure the release of a number of prisoners in September. The official Saudi Press Agency stated that mediation efforts led to the release of ten prisoners of war, who were nationals of Morocco, the United States, the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Croatia. The exchange was part of a larger agreement between Russia and Ukraine to release POWs.

Last week, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had a call with Russian President, Vladimir Putin, to discuss the crisis in Ukraine and issues related to OPEC, as stated by SPA. With Saudi Arabia playing a vital role in the region and with strong ties to both Ukraine and Russia, the visit by Prince Faisal to Kyiv highlights the country's continued efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

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