Yemen revisits its old Russian alliance

President Ali Abdullah Saleh in February travelled to Russia for high-profile talks with President Dmitry Medvedev, his mentor Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. While talks mainly centred on arms deals, Saleh also met the head of Russian oil giant Gazprom. Yemeni state media reported officials signed a '$1bn deal' to buy Russian equipment, including fighter planes, helicopters and tanks. This included the purchase of MiG-29 planes, helicopters, T-80 and T-72 tanks, and armoured vehicles. Local observers have long speculated that Yemen could be one of several regional states to host Russian bases in the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean,