ARABIALINK Daily News – SAUDI ARABIA – Excerpts from International Media Reports
[Links to full articles were active on the date posted here]
U.S. Saudi Sale May Have 84 F-15s, Total $30 Billion [Jul 22]
” A proposed U.S. arms sale to Saudi Arabia will include 84 new Boeing Co. F-15 fighter jets and may be valued at as much as $30 billion, according to a government official familiar with the plan. The deal also calls for selling 72 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters built by United Technologies Corp.’s Sikorsky unit and refurbishing 70 Saudi F-15s, said the official, who asked not to be identified because terms are still under discussion. Navy Vice Admiral Jeffrey Wieringa, director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which oversees foreign sales, said separately today that Congress may be formally notified “within two months” about the transaction, which he said includes jets, helicopters, ships and missile-defense systems. He said he couldn’t give specifics..” [Complete Report]
Saudi Aramco Extends Bids for Yanbu Refinery Unit [Jul 22]
“tate oil giant Saudi Aramco has asked firms to extend the deadline for bids to build one of the units at the 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) Yanbu refinery, industry sources said on Thursday. The Yanbu project accounts for just under a quarter of the country’s planned expansion of around 1.7 million bpd of refining capacity on top of the current 2.1 million bpd. The state-run firm [SDABO.UL] had previously asked engineering firms to extend the validity by 60 days to July 26 for bids for contracts for the Yanbu project. The deadline has been pushed back further for the coker unit, the sources said, but it remains unchanged for other units..” [Complete Report]
Shoura Chairman Condemns UN Double Standard [Jul 22]
“The Kingdom has called on the United Nations to intervene and stop ongoing Israeli settlement building in Palestinian territories. Shoura Council Chairman Abdullah Al-Asheikh said the UN needed to stop Palestinian rights being violated. He was addressing delegates at the third World Conference of Speakers of Parliament, which concluded in Geneva on Wednesday.. ..“The Middle East region is still witnessing continuous Israeli occupation and its daily violations of the rights of the Palestinian people, who live under oppression, destruction and genocide,” said Al-Asheikh. “We see that those who speak the language of law and call for the application of the principles of human rights, justice and equality, ignores all of that when it comes to Israel. This double standard policy is shown in its ugliest form, and thus we see that the Palestinian individual is deprived of his least rights,”..” [Complete Report]
West Unruffled by Saudi, UAE Nuclear Aims [Jul 22]
“Oil powers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have joined the race to gain nuclear energy, but in sharp contrast to nearby Iran, their ambitions are unlikely to worry the West. Sanctions are piling up against OPEC member Iran as the international community seeks to force it to contain its nuclear activities. On Monday, the European Union is expected to adopt the latest set of measures. No-one disputes that Iran, in common with its fellow Middle Eastern oil producers, has an urgent need for more sources of power generation to prevent it burning fuel oil to meet surging domestic energy demand. The problem is the suspicion Tehran is on the road to building a nuclear bomb, whereas Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are credited with only wanting peaceful power..” [Complete Report]
Saudi Arabia Pavilion Becomes Favorite of Chinese Tourists [Jul 22]
“A survey shows that among the 300-plus pavilions at the Shanghai World Expo, the Saudi Arabia Pavilion has become the favorite pavilion of Chinese tourists, beating out the Japan Pavilion, according to news from the China News Service. Since the Shanghai World Expo opened two months ago, the total number of visitors has exceeded 25 million, and the number of daily visitors reached between 350,000 and 500,000 in July. The survey was conducted by the Horizon Research Consultancy Group, who came to the conclusion by conducting surveys in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Chengdu, Dalian, Xi’an and Jinan. The survey shows that the China Pavilion, Saudi Arabia Pavilion and Japan Pavilion received the highest evaluations and the China Pavilion and U.S. Pavilion are the most anticipated pavilions..” [Complete Report]
