RIYADH: The Saudi Cabinet on Tuesday reviewed the Kingdom’s recent diplomatic engagements, domestic achievements and a wide slate of new cooperation agreements across security, technology and education.
At the start of the session, chaired by King Salman, ministers highlighted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the US this week, describing it as a key step in efforts to strengthen the strategic partnership with Washington, and advance a shared vision for a stable and secure Middle East, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
They also noted recent communications with world leaders, including messages received from South Korea’s president, Lee Jae Myung, and the Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian.
Ministers discussed the Kingdom’s participation in regional and international meetings, and reaffirmed Saudi Arabia’s call during a gathering of Gulf Cooperation Council interior ministers last week for greater collective action to tackle security challenges and support development across the region.
The acting minister of media, Issam bin Saad bin Saeed, said the Cabinet welcomed the global recognition Saudi Arabia has recently gained in the tourism sector, including the adoption at the UN Tourism General Assembly last week of the Riyadh Declaration, which sets out a road map for more sustainable and inclusive growth.
Cabinet members commended the crown prince for his patronage of the fourth Global AI Summit, which will be held in Riyadh in September next year, and reviewed major digital initiatives announced at the Digital Government Forum this month.
They also highlighted national efforts to localize the military industry, noting that the rate of localization reached 24.89 percent by the end of 2024 and the government aims to increase this to more than 50 percent by 2030.
Ministers approved memorandums of understanding with several countries, including agreements with Kenya for customs cooperation; Jordan on food and drug regulations; Oman on educational quality and accreditation; Russia on vocational training; and Singapore for legal cooperation.
They also endorsed two GCC-wide frameworks: a unified industrial regulation law; and unified rules for the prevention of domestic violence, exploitation and abuse.
In other decisions, the National Center for Mental Health Promotion was placed under the direct supervision of the Minister of Health; new members were appointed the board of the Saudi Center for Economic Business and the terms of existing members were renewed; and the final accounts of several government organizations were approved.
The Cabinet also approved senior promotions within the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Interior, and reviewed annual reports from key authorities including the General Authority of Civil Aviation, the airline Saudia, and the Saudi Red Crescent Authority.
