Russia, Arab League summit postponed amid Gaza peace plan efforts

October 9, 2025 (MOSCOW) – Russia and the Arab League have postponed their first-ever joint summit, scheduled for October 15, due to leaders’ involvement in efforts to implement a U.S.-led plan to end the war in Gaza, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

The decision was made in a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia’ Al Sudani, whose country currently chairs the Arab League. A Kremlin statement said it would be “difficult” for many Arab leaders to travel to Moscow amid the “active phase” of the Gaza peace plan pushed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

A new date for the summit will be agreed upon later and communicated through diplomatic channels, the Kremlin added.

The summit in Moscow was set to be the first of its kind, with leaders from all 22 Arab nations invited. Attendees, including the head of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, were expected to discuss economic and security cooperation.

Yuri Ushakov, a Kremlin foreign policy aide, had previously stated that the summit’s theme was “Cooperation for Peace, Stability, and Security.” He noted that the list of attendees was still in flux because many of the invited leaders were “directly involved” in the work on the Gaza plan, according to the state news agency TASS.