Search results

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) held a reception at Mina Palace in late June for princes and senior scholars, officials and military figures participating in this year’s Hajj, with his youngest brother Prince Rakan Bin Salman among those attending.

Saudi Arabia's former deputy defence minister Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Bin Abdelaziz is facing another legal challenge in London's Commercial Court after Dublin-based Yuntian 10 Leasing Company, owned by China Minsheng Bank, filed a case against him relating to a Boeing 787 leased by Bermuda’s Dream Aircraft, on which the prince provided personal guarantees.

Gulf Co-operation Council foreign ministers were in Moscow on 10 July for the sixth round of the Russia-GCC strategic dialogue – the first time the meeting had been held in Russia since 2016. Moscow appeared keen to ensure the Ukraine war did not dominate the talks.

Saudi Arabia's Royal Court in early July announced the death of Prince Talal Bin Mansour Bin Abdelaziz. Talal was educated in Jeddah and spent some time in the US. Talal was the only son of King Abdelaziz (Ibn Saud)'s son Prince Mansour, who died in 1951 in Paris.

The launch of the Saudi-backed Hadhramaut National Council on 19 June has underlined fears that Yemen could break up into three distinct areas, with the Houthis controlling Sanaa and other parts of the north, while the rest of the country is divided between the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council and other groups supported by Saudi Arabia.

French-headquartered aerospace company Airbus is to set up a facility with Saudi Arabia's Scopa Industries Corporation to build military and civilian helicopters in the kingdom, following an agreement signed on the sidelines of the Saudi-French Investment Forum in Paris.

Saudi Prince Abdulrahman Bin Mohammed Bin Abdelaziz Bin Ayyaf Al-Muqrin was appointed deputy defence minister in June. He had previously been cabinet secretary-general from spring 2017 to July 2022, when he was appointed an advisor at the Royal Court.

Gulf leaders have been prominent interlocutors with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in the days since an abortive mutiny by the Wagner Group mercenary force led by Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Iran's foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has said he received a favourable reception to the idea of forming a new dialogue forum with Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, following a series of meetings with his counterparts around the region in June.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) met French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris in June to discuss bilateral relations. MBS was also in town to promote Saudi commercial interests.

Saudi Prince Saud Bin Abdulrahman Bin Nasser Bin Abdelaziz Al-Saud was removed from his position as Northern Borders deputy governor. No replacement has yet been announced. Prince Saud had held the post for just over a year.

Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul)-listed Red Sea International (RSI) has bought a 51% stake in Jeddah-based construction company First Fix for SR544.1m ($145m).

An Iranian naval commander has claimed GCC states are interested in joining a new coalition to patrol regional waters. Given the concerns in many capitals about recent Iranian seizures of oil tankers that seems unlikely to progress, but the UAE has recently pulled out of the US-led Combined Maritime Forces – seemingly due to unhappiness about the amount of support Washington is willing to give to its regional partners.

Iran reopened its embassy in Riyadh, some seven years after it was shuttered and three months after the two countries agreed to resume full diplomatic relations in a deal brokered by China. Iran also reopened its consulate in Jeddah. 

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Industry signed a $5.6bn agreement with Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Human Horizons to set up a joint venture to develop and manufacture cars in the kingdom. Human Horizons makes cars under the HiPhi brand.