Russia** Putin recently made a trip to the Middle East, visiting the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Interestingly, the two Middle Eastern countries, while maintaining military cooperation with the United States, allowed Russian Su-35 fighter jets to escort the entire escort in order to warn the United States and demonstrate Russia's strength.
According to the Kremlin's confirmation, during the visit, Russia sent four bomb-loaded Su-35 fighters, each armed with four air-to-air missiles, for a total of 16 missiles.
Judging from the ** pictures published on social networks, these Su-35 fighters carry R-73 short-range combat air-to-air missiles and R-77 medium-range air-to-air missiles.
The effective strike range of the R-73 missile is about 30 km, and the speed can reach 2Mach 5, while the R-77 missile has an attack range of up to 100 kilometers and has the technical level of "launch or not". This operation is not only a warning to the United States, but also a demonstration of Russia's military strength.
Considering the complex situation in the Middle East and the multiple bases of the US military stationed there, it is clear that this operation cannot be ignored. It is worth mentioning that the United States military is stationed at Hafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates and Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, and Qatar has the largest U-Deid Air Base in the Middle East.
Although the number of missiles equipped with the four Su-35 fighters may seem insufficient, it fully demonstrates Russia's strong military strength.
The agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to open their airspace and give Russia a high-level reception shows that although the United States can control the Middle East militarily, it cannot prevent Middle Eastern countries from developing cooperative relations with China and Russia.
The West's coverage of Putin's trip to the Middle East has some sour tones, calling it "isolated in the Middle East and seeking allies." However, the fact is that Putin did not deliberately seek allies, and the UAE personally led a delegation to greet him at the airport.
In Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Mohammed personally received Putin and had lunch with him, showing a very close relationship. (Putin was warmly received). Another interesting detail is that Putin's plane appears to have traveled through Iranian airspace to visit the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Recently, Iran has just confirmed the purchase of a large amount of Russian equipment, including Su-35 fighter jets. Therefore, Russia specially arranged Su-35 fighter jets to escort Putin's plane, which added a special meaning to this trip.
Iran has "officially announced" the introduction of Su-35 fighter jets) The current Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Middle East still exists, leading to tensions between the United States and Iran. Arab countries generally distrust the apparent partiality of the United States on the Palestinian-Israeli issue, and have turned to seek fair mediation between China and Russia.
The warm reception of Putin by Middle Eastern countries may reflect the policy shift of Arab countries. The United States' influence in the Middle East has been weakening, and this decline is actually caused by the consequences of the United States' own intervention and provocation in the Middle East.