Search results

The health of Saudi Arabia’s King Salman is widely believed to have deteriorated, leaving the ambitious Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman closer than ever to a formal assumption of power. Meanwhile, the heir apparent appears to be negotiating new regional alignments, notably with Kuwait.

Saudia placed an order for 105 Airbus planes during the Future Aviation Forum in Riyadh, where local conglomerate AHQ Group signed an MoU with Brazil’s Embraer to review the potential launch of a new airline in the region.

Faisal Bin Saud Al-Mujfel has been named as Saudi Arabia’s envoy to Damascus as formal diplomatic ties are slowly restored, but wider relations with GCC countries continue to be undermined by the flow of illegal drugs to the Gulf from regime-held areas in Syria.

The recently-appointed Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah held talks in Jeddah on 11 June with his Saudi counterpart Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in the latest of a wave of bilateral meetings involving senior figures from the neighbouring countries.

Riyadh has continued to tap a range of sources of finance to support investments in the domestic economy, with Aramco shares worth $11bn being sold and the Public Investment Fund issuing $830m in debt, pushing the PIF’s total debt burden close to $40bn.

With great power competition rising between the US and China over the development of artificial intelligence, the major Gulf economies are being forced by Washington to pick a side. The UAE appears to have come down firmly in favour of working with American AI firms, while Saudi Arabia has been divesting its American AI investments and striking deals with Chinese rivals.

King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa says there is “no reason to delay” the restoration of diplomatic relations with Tehran, some eight years after they were severed, while Iran’s acting president has invited Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to visit, in a further sign of Tehran’s efforts to improve relations with its Arab neighbours.

Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman postponed a visit to Japan at the last minute due to concerns around King Salman’s health, but then sought to reassure the public about his father’s condition at the weekly cabinet meeting.

Prince Turki Bin Miqrin is reportedly set to take delivery of the world’s largest sportfishing yacht, the $70m, 52-metre Special One, which is undergoing sea trials in the North Sea.

Dubai has revived plans to turn Al-Maktoum International into the world’s largest airport, pointing to a huge projected upturn in regional carriers’ business in coming decades and the commercial emirate’s determination to counter the challenge posed by regional rivals.

King Salman Bin Abdelaziz had what officials described as a routine check-up at King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Jeddah on 24 April, leaving the hospital on the same day.

As the GCC region’s big economic powers vie for global business, Dubai is reviving plans to turn Al-Maktoum International into the world’s largest airport, not least preparing for the challenge posed by Saudi Arabia’s eye-watering aviation strategy. The Dubai megaproject’s revival comes as Riyadh pushes to grab a big slice of the international aviation market – if Saudi carriers can overcome the challenge of securing sufficient planes, pilots and passengers needed to meet the kingdom’s hugely ambitious plans.

Iranian officials have been engaged in a flurry of meetings and phone calls with GCC member states, in a sign that Tehran may be trying to leverage regional anger over the Gaza conflict to improve relations with its Arab neighbours.

The Capital Market Authority has found 13 investors guilty of violating the Capital Market Law. Among those fined was former ambassador Turki Bin Abdullah Al-Dakhil.

Governor Prince Turki Bin Talal has launched a regional tourism ‘identity’ for Asir to promote his province, which officials say is slated to receive over $13bn for its development by 2030, the majority of which should come from the Public Investment Fund.