PUTIN PAYS A CALL ON UAE LEADERSHIP

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 001517

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/FO DAS GRAY; PM/RSAT; P HMUSTAPHA
DOD FOR OSD PDAS MBLONG; DAS KIMMITT
NSC FOR NRAMCHAND, MDORAN, EABRAMS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/11/2017
TAGS: PREL ETRD RS AE
SUBJECT: PUTIN PAYS A CALL ON UAE LEADERSHIP

REF: ABU DHABI 1497

Classified by Charge d'Affaires Martin Quinn, reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).


1. (SBU) Russian President Vladimir Putin made a six-hour
stop in Abu Dhabi September 10, on his return from the APEC
Summit in Australia. The visit was the first by a Russian
head of state since the UAE gained independence in 1971.
Putin lunched with UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed and
presided over the signing of a number of bilateral agreements
(concerning cooperation on fighting crime, aviation services,
peaceful use of space, diplomatic cooperation, and procedures
for servicing -- and eventually eliminating -- outstanding
Soviet debt estimated at about $600 million).


2. (C) MFA Assistant Under Secretary for International
Cooperation Mohammed Abdul Rahim Abduljalil told PolChief
September 11 that the visit was productive but predictable,
with no particularly meaningful agreements.


3. (C) Having established diplomatic relations in 1986,
Russia and the UAE have found compatibility in trade
relations and engaged to a certain degree in security
cooperation (including discussions on the Pantsyr air defense
system, ref A). Russian presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko
was quoted in the press as saying Putin would "naturally
discuss military-technical cooperation," but no concrete
results of such discussions are yet clear.


4. (C) According to various press reports, bilateral trade
is expected to reach a record $800 million this year. As
many as 450 Russian companies are registered in the UAE, with
a resident Russian population of about 10,000 (and a school
of 200 students). The English Daily "Gulf News" gave the
breakdown in imports from Russia as raw diamonds and gold
(40%),machinery (20%),raw materials (15%),food and
agricultural products (10%),chemicals (5%),and "other"
(10%). The UAE is also a significant tourist destination,
with an estimated 280,000 Russian tourists visiting annually.
On the dark side of the relationship, women from Russia and
other former-Soviet republics have a reputation for
prostitution, and Russian-Mafia money is allegedly invested
in the Dubai property market.


5. (SBU) Seminars by the Arab-Russian Business Council and
similar organizations reportedly addressed the need to relax
visa requirements for Russians visiting the UAE, the
possibility of regular marine services between the two
countries, and the exchange of industrial information. With
names like "Relations between the UAE and the Russian
Federation," these symposia were complemented by a positive
mood of cultural exchange, with an exhibition of Kremlin
treasures opened in the upscale Emirates Palace Hotel and a
parcel of land recently granted for the building of the first
Russian Orthodox church in the UAE.


6. (SBU) Putin is reported in the press to have commented on
U.S.-Russia relations as well, noting that it is still
possible to reach a compromise with the United States over
Washington's plans to locate parts of a missile-defense
shield in Europe. Putin called for settling the matter by
compromise rather than "with confrontation and by rattling
weapons."


7. (C) Comment: The fact that Putin visited is significant
as a show of interest in relations with the UAE and an
endorsement of ongoing economic cooperation. The visit is
not likely to lead to an immediate upswing in strategic
relations, although awareness of mutual interest in stable
economic ties clearly got a boost. With the exception of the
agreement to deal with Russia's Soviet-era debt, most of the
agreements appear to be the general "fluff" that accompany
most high-level visits. The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority,
which had met with Russian officials prior to Putin's visit
declined to sign any agreement, as the terms were "not
favorable." End comment.

QUINN