"At the first stage, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia took an active part in this work, for which we are also grateful to him, since this eventually led to the return of our citizens to their homeland," Putin said during the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).
Many countries took part in the work regarding the prisoner exchange, Putin added.
Evan Gershkovich is a Wall Street Journal reporter who, in March 2023, on assignment from the CIA, was collecting secret information in the Russian Sverdlovsk region about the Uralvagonzavod's operations in the production and repair of military equipment. The Russian court sentenced Gershkovich to 16 years for espionage. He was eventually pardoned and included in the lists for international exchange, which took place on August 1.
Russia and Saudi Arabia have a strong partnership in general, in particular within the framework of the OPEC+ oil alliance created in 2016, where both countries play a leading role. Riyadh advocates for expanding cooperation with Russia in the trade, economic, transport, logistics and investment areas, increasing turnover in these areas.
During his presidency, Putin visited Saudi Arabia three times, the last time at the end of 2023. He became the first leader in the history of bilateral relations to visit the kingdom. Personal trusting relations link the leadership of Russia and Saudi Arabia.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud are among the first among the leaders of the countries to congratulate the leadership of the Russian Federation on national holidays and express support in difficult situations.
The Eastern Economic Forum began on Tuesday and will run through Friday. It is being hosted by the Far Eastern Federal University in Russia's Pacific coast city of Vladivostok. Sputnik is the general information partner of the EEF 2024.