Saudi Arabia to invest $10 billion in Russia

The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia has signed a commitment to invest up to $10 billion in projects in Russia. The agreement was signed by the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) on the Russian side.

According to RDIF chief Kirill Dmitriev, this is the largest deal with a foreign investor in the history of the RDIF.

Dmitriev said the $10 billion will be invested over the course of four to five years. The agreement also stipulates that Russia and Saudi Arabia may seek mutual investment opportunities in other developing countries.

Priority sectors for this partnership include infrastructure, agriculture, medicine, logistics, retail, real estate.

Russia’s relations with the USA and the EU have been deteriorating since the annexation of Crimea and the beginning of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, and the Russian economy is suffering under the weight of economic sanctions imposed by Western states. Most recently, the EU extended its Russia sanctions until the end of January 2016.

In early May, Russia and China agreed to launch at $2 billion investment fund for supporting agriculture in the two countries. Russia and China also agreed on a free-trade zone between their main farming areas. The deal has not yet been implemented. Russia has also moved to develop closer ties with OPEC states.