Saudi and Russian foreign ministers discuss Hormuz, Yemen at G20

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan has met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in the US. The ministers discussed regional developments, with a focus on recent developments in Yemen and maritime navigation in the Straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb, according to Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Reuters reported that Lavrov's participation in the two-day gathering in Atlanta has roiled many G20 ministers, aggravating deep rifts over the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East that experts and diplomats say could thwart real progress at the meeting. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that during the meeting, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Faisal Bin Farhan with whom he signed a contract to have a US pavilion at the Expo 2023 world fair in Riyadh. Expo 2030 represents another large-scale building project that the kingdom has committed to on a strict deadline. During the G20 in Atlanta, Georgia, Rubio urged foreign ministers to work together for greater geopolitical stability and economic prosperity, warning that a series of crises posed serious threats to the global economic order.