Russian President Vladimir Putin landed this Wednesday (06) in Abu Dhabi, on one of his rare trips amid the conflict with Ukraine. During the flight, Putin's Il-96 presidential plane was escorted by a squadron of Sukhoi Su-35 fighters until landing in the Emirati capital.
The escort of Russian Aerospace Forces fighters was recorded in a video published by the Ministry of Defense. The images show the pilots inspecting the jets, just before the Su-35s took off in pairs, amid heavy rain. The aircraft are armed with a pair of R-73 missiles short-range and two more medium-range R-77 missiles.
During the journey, “Russian Air Force One” was closely monitored by fighter planes, until arrival in the USA. In Abu Dhabi, the jets flew over the airport in a diamond formation, before the final landing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FNrYud1T74
According to Putin's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin had to request several authorizations for the overflight, especially because the jets were armed. He later thanked everyone involved for their cooperation.
The trip to the United Arab Emirates is the first stage of Putin's diplomatic visit to the Middle East. Today he meets with the Emirati president, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to discuss issues such as the war between Israel and Hamas and oil production by OPEC+. After talks in Abu Dhabi, he heads to Saudi Arabia.
Putin is the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) due to crimes in the conflict with Ukraine, and for this reason he has limited trips abroad. As the UAE and Saudi Arabia are not part of the ICC, which means a free for the Russian president.
