Johnson to Visit Saudi Arabia, UAE on Wednesday

Johnson to Visit Saudi Arabia, UAE on Wednesday

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to kick off a visit to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday.

Johnson will head to Abu Dhabi first, then Riyadh. He is set to meet the Saudi and Emirati leaderships.

"The leaders are expected to discuss efforts to improve energy security and reduce volatility in energy and food prices, which is affecting businesses and consumers in the UK as well as regional stability in the Middle East. In addition to potential further measures to increase oil production, Johnson is focused on diversifying the UK’s energy supply and working with international partners to ramp up renewables," the PM's office said in a statement.

"The UK is building an international coalition to deal with the new reality we face. The world must wean itself off Russian hydrocarbons and starve Putin's addiction to oil and gas," Johnson said in a statement before the meetings.

"Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are key international partners in that effort. We will work with them to ensure regional security, support the humanitarian relief effort and stabilize global energy markets for the longer term."

"The brutal and unprovoked assault President Putin has unleashed on Ukraine will have far-reaching consequences for