Russia's sovereign wealth fund chief, Kirill Dmitriev, is scheduled to meet with a U.S. delegation in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to strengthen ties and enhance economic cooperation, according to a source in Riyadh. This meeting marks Dmitriev's first confirmed participation in talks with the United States.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia, accompanied by Trump's national security adviser Mike Waltz and White House Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
Having studied at Harvard and Stanford in the 1990s, the 49-year-old Dmitriev is an investment banker with a background in U.S. firms like Goldman Sachs and McKinsey before returning to Moscow. Prior to heading the RDIF in 2011, an investment fund aimed at attracting foreign investment to Russia, Dmitriev had founded the U.S. capital-backed private equity firm Delta Equity Partners in Russia.
Dmitriev was involved in initial contacts between Moscow and Trump's team after Trump's election in 2016 and played a pivotal role in fostering Russia's ties with Saudi Arabia, ultimately leading to an OPEC+ oil price agreement.
Having had several meetings with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Dmitriev was instrumental in mediating a recent prisoner exchange between Russia and the U.S. Both sides have mentioned Saudi Arabia as a potential location for the anticipated Putin-Trump summit.