Russian President Vladimir Putin and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed kicked off a new phase in bilateral relations on Friday. Russia’s Kremlin announced that Putin and the crown prince signed a strategic partnership declaration as a culmination of previous agreements to strengthen bilateral cooperation. Both nations agreed in April 2017 to give Russian-UAE relations a strategic partnership status and prepare for a joint declaration. Russia-UAE ties have developed rapidly over the past two decades, with the UAE becoming the first Arab country to develop extensive cooperation with Russia in fields of mutual investment, trade exchange and joint manufacturing of a number of technologies, including military equipment. The agenda of the working visit by the UAE crown prince to Russia reflects a mutual desire on both sides to move relations to a new stage. A bilateral meeting bringing Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan with Putin focused on bilateral ties and mechanisms of strengthening them, regional and international affairs. The Kremlin said both countries share "identical or very close" views on all the vital issues raised. On the political level, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash stressed the importance of strengthening Russian-UAE coordination across various files and pointed to opening new horizons for cooperation between Moscow and Abu Dhabi. In 2013, a joint investment fund was established between the Abu Dhabi Financial Department and the Russian Direct Investment Fund encompassing different sectors of the Russian economy. Another government-level committee for international cooperation between Russia and the UAE has been established in 1994 covering fields of trade, economy and technology cooperation. Since September 2005, the Russian-UAE Business Council also launched its works. Military and technical cooperation is also developing steadily between the two countries—in the time between 2000 and 2014, the UAE received weapons and military equipment worth $ 714 million from Russian Defense Ministry products.