Media outlets in Russia say President Vladimir Putin will visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia later this week.

Except for visits to former Soviet Union countries, Putin has rarely traveled abroad since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began. His last trip beyond those nations was to China in October.

Russian online media close to Putin reported on Monday the planned visits to the two oil producing Middle Eastern countries, citing presidential aide Yury Ushakov.

Russia, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, which are all members of OPEC Plus, announced voluntary output cuts on Thursday to prop up faltering prices of crude oil.

During the visit, Putin is expected to discuss cooperation among the three nations in the energy sector.

The International Criminal Court has issued a warrant for Putin's arrest. But neither the UAE nor Saudi Arabia is a member of the ICC, so that they are not obliged to arrest and extradite the Russian president.

On Monday, Putin received credentials from 21 newly appointed ambassadors at a ceremony in the capital Moscow.

He referred to blasts in September of last year that affected Nord Streams natural gas pipelines that link Russia and Germany.

Putin said that Russia had been supplying Germany with gas and other fuel at reasonable prices for decades, but that the bilateral cooperation was disrupted by the blasts on the Nord Streams and other factors.