Russia wants to boost trade ties with the UAE at the same time as it pursues closer links with Iran.
The Russian trade minister Denis Manturov told The National that he wanted to grow the US$2 billion in trade with the UAE while also boosting industrial cooperation with Iran.
He has visited Tehran and Abu Dhabi in recent weeks, while last month the Russian president Vladimir Putin also visited Iran for the first time in almost a decade.
“Such a cooperation belongs to the realm of economics only, not politics,” he said.
Warming trade relations between Moscow and Tehran come as Arabian Gulf states led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE are fighting Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Russia has agreed to resume nuclear exports to Iran while a major export deal of the S-300 missile system to Iran has also been revived. The missile deal was originally signed in 2007, but deliveries were subsequently blocked by the Kremlin.
That triggered a $4bn lawsuit brought by Iran against Rosoboronexport, a unit of the military conglomerate Rostec that oversees military exports
As Russia has become isolated by the West over the conflict in Ukraine, the country is busy looking to forge new trade relationships to source raw materials for its own manufacturers and find new customers for its exports.
Mr Manturov said there was no conflict between Russia’s military exports to Iran and its desire to grow trade with other Gulf states.
“The trade turnover between Russia and Iran has been steadily growing,” he said. “The countries are efficiently cooperating in virtually every field including such industries as oil and gas, energy, metallurgy, machine tool technology, engine manufacturing, automotive, vehicles, aircraft production and others,” he said.
“Besides, we are working hard on establishing advanced joint venture projects, engineering centres and industrial parks. We also see excellent opportunities for military and technical cooperation with Iran, just like with any other country in the region.”
Russia also wants to increase its livestock trade with the UAE.
“In this context, a long-term and mutual investment partnership independent of any current political developments is moving to the forefront. It will facilitate the cooperation between the Russian Direct Investments Foundation and the largest UAE investment funds. We also pay special attention to enhancing the contractual and treaty conditions for our relations.”
Russia is also keen to boost visitor numbers from the UAE, opening the Russian National Tourist Office in June. “I am convinced that the number of UAE visitors to Russia will be growing year by year,” said Mr Manturov.
Russia has also been actively participating in defence and aviation exhibitions in the UAE.
Sukhoi, the Russian plane maker, and Russian Helicopters were present at the Dubai Airshow last month, while weapons makers such as Kalashnikov participated in the Idex defence exhibition in the capital in February.
scronin@thenational.ae
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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