Cabinet underscores importance of king’s Asia tour

RIYADH: The Saudi Cabinet has underscored the importance of King Salman’s current tour of Asian countries.
Chaired by Vice Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Mohammed bin Naif at Yamamah Palace on Monday, the Cabinet noted the Kingdom’s strong ties with these countries based on mutual respect and its keenness to develop them.
The Cabinet expressed appreciation for the respect enjoyed by the Kingdom at all levels in light of its efforts to realize global security and stability, its moderate and tolerant approach, and its efforts against terrorism and extremism.
The Cabinet was briefed on the outcome of a visit by Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir to Iraq, and reaffirmed ties between the two sisterly countries.
The Cabinet explored regional and international developments, and in this context welcomed the resumption of Syrian talks in Geneva under UN auspices.
The Cabinet expressed hope that the talks would lead to a political solution to the crisis based on the Geneva Declaration and UN Security Council resolution 2254, in a manner that ends the suffering of the Syrian people and realizes their aspirations.
Locally, the Cabinet appreciated the recent convening of the international conference on integrity, held in Riyadh under the patronage of King Salman.
The Cabinet also lauded the opening of the electronic security center by Prince Mohammed, and the keenness of the government to preserve the security and safety of the people and the national economy.
The Cabinet approved a cooperation agreement in fighting crime between the governments of Saudi Arabia and Kyrgyzstan, signed in Jeddah.
The Cabinet authorized the deputy crown prince, second deputy premier and defense minister, or whomever he authorizes, to discuss with Russia a draft agreement on the protection of classified information.
The Cabinet approved a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in judiciary and legal affairs between the Saudi and Afghan governments.
The Cabinet authorized the education minister, or whomever he authorizes, to sign a draft program between the Saudi Ministry of Education and the Qatari Higher Council of Education.
The Cabinet authorized Al-Jubeir, or whomever he authorizes, to discuss with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) a draft agreement between the government and the WIPO.
The Cabinet authorized the minister of labor and social development, or whomever he authorizes, to discuss with Japan a draft MoU on social development between the Saudi Ministry of Labor and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The Cabinet approved a scientific cooperation agreement between the governments of Saudi Arabia and Belarus.
The Cabinet authorized King Saud University (KSU) to discuss an MoU for academic cooperation between KSU and Shanghai University in China.
The Cabinet authorized the minister of culture and information, or whomever he authorizes, to discuss with Indonesia and Malaysia a program to exchange news between the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) and Indonesian and Malaysian news agencies, separately.