Video Shows Putin Get Very Different Greeting Compared With Top NATO Leader

Russian President Vladimir Putin got a welcome with all the trimmings on his trip to the United Arab Emirates, which contrasted sharply with what greeted the German head of state, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, on his recent visit to a regional neighbor.

Following Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv's allies, led by the U.S., have sought to isolate Russia from the global financial system with sanctions. The International Criminal Court (ICC) to which the UAE is not a signatory, has issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader for the abduction of children in Ukraine.

But there was no sign he was a pariah on his state visit, which saw him receive the red-carpet treatment, including jets painting the colors of the Russian flag in the sky while his country's ensigns fluttered in the streets of Abu Dhabi as his convoy drove through, accompanied by cavalry.

"This is how internationally 'isolated' President of Russia Vladimir Putin was greeted in the UAE," read a mocking post by the account of Moscow's mission in South Africa to X (formerly Twitter), next to a video demonstrating a greeting as warm as the Middle Eastern climate.

One social media user compared the video of Putin's trip to the welcome that greeted German president Steinmeier in Qatar last month, when footage showed him standing forlornly at the top of the steps of his airplane because no Qatari official was in attendance.

"Steinmeier was forgotten by authorities in Qatar: How Russian and German presidents are received in Arab countries," posted the X account of Ignorance, the root and stem of evil to its 59,000 followers.

Deutsche Welle journalist Rosalia Romaniec, who traveled with the German head of state, said that the diplomatic bungle made her wonder whether it was a planning mistake or if Doha had cooled towards Germany after Steinmeier spent time during his three-day trip to the region in Israel.

Meanwhile, next to a video of Putin during his visit, entrepreneur Kim Dotcom posted "You just have to watch how Putin was greeted in the UAE and Saudi Arabia on his current Middle East visit to understand that the petrodollar is history and that the multipolar order is taking over."

The Kremlin said Putin was on a "working visit" to the UAE, during which he met its president, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and discussed "the current state of multifaceted bilateral cooperation," as well as the situation in the Middle East.

Saif Islam, an associate at global intelligence agency S-RM, said while Putin was "unlikely to return home with extraordinary gains," the trip would bolster relations on issues such as oil.

Another goal was "to leverage relations with the UAE and Saudi Arabia to cope with Western sanctions over the Ukraine invasion," he told Newsweek in emailed comments, adding that on the agenda was the war between Israel and Hamas, which has led to a spike in attacks in the region by Iranian proxies.

"The UAE and Saudi Arabia will likely hope that Russia can use its influence over Iran in a constructive manner, particularly in response to the Houthis' hostile activities in the Red Sea and the group's history of attacking Saudi and Emirati interests," Islam added.

Meanwhile, social media users expressed anger at the visit.

"Absolutely disgraceful. The UAE has rolled out the red carpet for indicted war criminal Vladimir Putin," posted Bill Browder, a political activist fighting against Putin.