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  • Saudi Arabia’s King Salman allocates $800m to social security recipients during Ramadan

    Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has ordered the distribution of more than SR3 billion ($800 million) in Ramadan assistance to social security recipients, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. The assistance includes SR1,000 for heads of families and SR500 for each dependent. The funds will be deposited directly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts, the SPA said. Saudi Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmad bin Sulaiman Al-Rajhi praised the king for his generosity in helping citizens with their needs during the holy month.

  • OPEC Voices Encouragement after IEA Affirms Support for Oil Security

    The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on Wednesday expressed encouragement after a commentary from the International Energy Agency (IEA) telling the globe to ensure petroleum supply while transitioning to a clean energy future. The development marks an easing of hostilities between the multi-governmental body and OPEC. The two clashed ahead of COP28 last year over the IEA’s claim that demand for fossil fuels could peak by 2030. In the commentary published Monday the IEA said while its work on energy security has expanded to include “the emerging security dimensions of clean energy transitions”, it has “a firm commitment to oil security”.

  • Saudi Arabia reaffirms world’s security and stability on advent of Ramadan

    The weekly session of the Council of Ministers, chaired by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Tuesday, reaffirmed the Kingdom’s wishes for the world’s security and stability on the advent of the holy month of Ramadan. Addressing the Cabinet, the Crown Prince expressed gratitude to God Almighty for blessing all Muslim communities with this holy month and granting the Kingdom the honor of serving the Two Holy Mosques and their visitors. He also prayed that this month may bring security and stability to the Islamic nations as well as to the entire world.

  • Sweden joins NATO as war in Ukraine prompts security rethink

    Sweden joined NATO in Washington on Thursday, two years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine forced it to rethink its national security policy and conclude that support for the alliance was the Scandinavian nation's best guarantee of safety. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson handed over the final documentation to the U.S. government on Thursday, the last step in a drawn-out process to secure the backing of all members to join the military alliance.

  • The UAE and the Red Sea Security Crisis

    Over the last two decades, the UAE has steadily expanded its control over ports, logistics hubs, and military bases in Yemen and East Africa and has supported armed groups that help it project political influence in those locations. DP World, a Dubai-based multinational logistics company, has been a “driving force” of this emerging empire. Cutting ties with Israel over Gaza, the UAE fears, could threaten its expansionist project.

  • Biotechnology solution could be key to unlocking Saudi food security

    Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have devised new techniques that can produce nutritious microalgae in industrial volumes, which could interest countries looking to diversify themselves off imported feed products and promote domestic food security. Algae is recognised as a superfood that can be grown cheaply with just sunshine, carbon dioxide and water. However, cultivation at scale is difficult meaning its potential has yet to be realized. Scientists working at KAUST’s new Saudi Center for Algal Biotechnology Development and Aquaculture, have developed their own Spirulina​ and Chlorella​ strains of algae which is uniquely adapted to seawater. The innovation dispenses with the need for freshwater and makes the production of livestock feed cultivated from algae sustainable and economically viable.

  • Saudi security forces arrest 19,431 illegal residents in a week

    Saudi security forces have arrested a total of 19,431 illegal residents during inspection raids carried out in all regions of Saudi Arabia during the third week of February. The arrested 19,431 illegal residents, included 11,897violators of the Residency Law, 4,254violators of the Border Security Law, and 3,280 violators of the Labor Law. The arrests were made during the joint field security campaigns carried out by security forces and the concerned government agencies during the period from Feb. 15 to Feb. 21, 2024.

  • Two years on, what the Russian invasion of Ukraine means for energy security and net-zero emissions

    Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 has reverberated throughout the global energy landscape, significantly impacting both energy security and the ongoing transition towards sustainable energy sources. Swift action is needed to mitigate risks, strengthen resilience, and ensure that energy remains a driver of stability and prosperity in the face of geopolitical uncertainty. Our experts share their insights on the second anniversary of the war.

  • Israel-Hamas war live updates: U.S. pushes for temporary Gaza cease-fire at U.N. Security Council

    The U.S. vetoed a U.N. Security Council vote on a resolution calling for an immediate end to the war in Gaza. Algeria introduced the resolution in the hopes of showing how broad the support for a cease-fire is. The U.S. has circulated an alternative draft resolution, which instead calls for a temporary pause in the fighting as part of hostage negotiations and opposes any ground operation in Rafah.

  • An Active Saudi Foreign Policy and a Broader Concept of Security in the Middle East

    During the last eight years, Saudi foreign policy has adopted a broad concept of security that is not limited to just restoring stability and containing crises but goes beyond it to achieve development and prosperity for all peoples of the region because of the organic relationship between security and development, as the state of turmoil suffered by many countries in the region is due to the failure of development, widespread poverty, the state of despair and hopelessness.