Oil Aside, Putin’s #Saudi Bromance So Far Yields Few Dividends - Bloomberg

Oil Aside, Putin’s Saudi Bromance So Far Yields Few Dividends - Bloomberg:

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit on Monday to Saudi Arabia, only his second since he came to power two decades ago, underscores the new depth in ties between the Kremlin and the traditional U.S. ally. Yet there’s also growing frustration in Moscow at the lack of tangible economic benefits.

Putin has built a personal bond with the de facto Saudi ruler, 34-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, famously sharing a high-five greeting with him at the Group of 20 summit last year. Geopolitically, Russia hopes to capitalize on its ability to navigate between arch-foes Saudi Arabia and Iran.

But since the landmark deal with OPEC, under which Russia anchored itself to the Saudi-dominated oil cartel in order to stabilize prices, promises of multi-billion-dollar investments and other deals have largely failed to materialize.