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The invisible Saudi king

Though breathless press reports predicted the Saudi leader would attend Russia’s MAKS-2015 air show, it seems that King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud never intended to visit Russia so soon after accepting the invitation to do so and will likely make the trip in the fall.
A Russian Yakovlev Yak-130 Mitten subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer performs during the MAKS-2015, the International Aviation and Space Show, in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, on August 25, 2015. AFP PHOTO / KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV        (Photo credit should read KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images)

Despite widespread media speculation about his attendance and even some inaccurate reports claiming it afterward, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud did not go to Russia’s MAKS-2015 air show last week or meet with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. What happened?

Putin invited Salman to Russia long ago and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman accepted the invitation on the king’s behalf in a June meeting with the Russian leader. A few weeks later — fairly soon by normal diplomatic standards — Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir traveled to Moscow to meet with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. Speaking to reporters following their meeting, Lavrov acknowledged that there were “still some differences regarding specific ways to reach a settlement in Syria” and said nothing about the king’s visit beyond confirming Putin’s invitation to him to “visit Russia at a convenient time.” Nevertheless, Russia’s government-run Sputnik website soon encouraged its readers to think that Salman could attend the arms expo, citing a defense industry source. This story in turn produced many Western media reports about Salman’s purported plans.

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