Russia, Saudi Arabia agree to strengthen ties

MOSCOW, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud voiced common willingness on Thursday to further develop bilateral relations.

Russia has always prioritized its ties with Saudi Arabia and is satisfied with their development, Lavrov said during talks with Faisal, who is paying a working visit to Moscow.

"Despite the difficult situation in the world, we have managed to maintain our trade turnover at a decent level. Last year, it amounted to 1.7 billion U.S. dollars. This is not the limit. We have agreed to take additional steps to increase trade in the future," Lavrov said at a briefing after the talks.

At the briefing, Faisal said that the two countries have managed to develop relations in various fields and Riyadh will continue to strengthen cooperation with Moscow in all sectors.

"We reaffirmed mutual readiness to further coordinate our actions within the framework of the OPEC+," Lavrov told reporters, while Faisal underscored the importance of Saudi Arabia-Russia cooperation as it is crucial for restoring stability in the energy market.