Russia’s growing cooperation with Saudi Arabia has come into focus of the US business. In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has been the closest US ally so far, and not only in terms of the military partnership. Representatives of both countries have established strong business ties over the years, and Russia’s growing friendship with the kingdom may be seen as strategic competition against the US. Kirill Dmitriev, chief executive of Russia's Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), commented on the relationship with the Saudi kingdom: “Many people didn’t believe that we’ll make much progress.” He also noted that there were only few funds that had made such great progress in attracting Saudi investments, and the RDIF was among them. Kirill Dmitriev insists that this new stage in the relationship between the two countries should be seen as “building bridges” and is a positive move for both the Saudi and Russian economies. Besides, Russian non-state pension funds and large banks are interested in IPO (initial public offering of shares on the stock exchange) of the Saudi Aramco - the largest state oil company in the kingdom. However, some assume that the Saudis are engaging in the deal with Russia in order to attract attention of the US and get more preferences.
