February 9, 2007

THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES BRIEFS THE CABINET ON HIS CONSULTATIONS WITH A NUMBER OF WORLD LEADERS AND ENVOYS. THE CABINET STRESSES THAT THE COUNTRIES OF THE EUROPEAN UNION MUST PLAY AN INDEPENDENT, OBJECTIVE, AND EFFECTIVE ROLE IN THE PALESTINIAN, IRAQI AND THE LEBANESE ISSUES. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques chaired the Cabinet weekly session at Al Yamamah Palace in Riyadh. At the outset, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Cabinet on the communications, consultations, and meetings he has had over the previous days with a number of world leaders and state envoys, and which dealt with bilateral relations, regional issues, and world affairs. The Monarch welcomed the visit of the German Chancellor, Dr. Angela Merkel, pointing to the importance of the relationships that bind the two friendly countries. In his statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, the Minister of Culture and Information Iyad bin Ameen Madani said the Cabinet has emphasized the internationally substantial and effective weight that Germany enjoys as one of the largest European countries, head of the European Union, and so too are the European countries in general since they historically, geographically, and culturally have a strong relation to what is taking place in the Middle East. Such a status compels the countries of the European Union to play an independent, objective, initiating, and effective role on the Palestinian issue, the Iraqi predicament, the Lebanese crisis, and the development programs in the region. The Minister of Culture and Information further pointed that the Cabinet welcomed the positive response of the Palestinians to the call of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques that they hold a Palestinian/Palestinian meeting in the sanctuary of the Grand Mosque in Makkah Al-Mukaramah, away from the interference of any other party. The Cabinet looks forward that this meeting will embody the independence of the Palestinian decision, and that the Palestinian leaderships will shoulder their responsibilities towards the Palestinian People only. The Cabinet hopes that all countries of the region will gain as a result of the unity of the Palestinian people and of the unity of the ranks the Palestinian leaderships. The Minister of Culture and Information concluded his statement saying that the Cabinet then addressed its local agenda and issued the following decisions: First: Reviewing the request of the Minister of Economy and Planning concerning the obstacles facing constructors and their suggested solutions, the Cabinet issued certain procedures of which are: 1. amending the value of the advance payment which is handed out at the signing of Government contracts an projects to become equal to 10% of the overall value of the contract, provided it does not exceed SR 50,000,000 (fifty Million Saudi Riyal), issued against a bank guarantee of equal value. 2. The Saudization percentage applied to the sector of construction must be 5% (five percent), in addition preferment for Saudis in the administrative positions. 3. Extension of the validity of the Saudization credit for a year for those who achieve the appointed percentage. 4. When drafting conditions and standardizations for government contracts, Government authorities in coordination with the Ministry of Labor have consider exemptions from the Saudization percentage for technical positions which may not be available at the local market 5. The Government will pay all official paper expenses for laborers, technicians, and supervisors overlooking the continuous construction contracts. 6. When privileges are extended to any company or foreign contractor, the same must also be given to Saudi construction companies. Second: The Minister of Finance or his deputy was authorized to sign a draft agreement between the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the government of the republic of Belarus regarding encouragement and mutual protection for investments and forward the final version for further authentication. The Minister of Culture and Information or his deputy was authorized to draft a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the cultural field between the ministry of culture and information of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Federal Agency for Culture and Cinema Arts of the Federal Republic of Russia, sign it and forward the final version for further authentication. The Cabinet approved the appointment of Ahmed Bin Ali Bin Ahmed Al-Zahrani as director general of administrative and financial affairs of the ministry of justice; Abdullah Bin Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Dhuwaihi as legal consultant at the ministry of civil service; Mohammed Bin Nasser Bin Mohammed Al-Khamees as assistant undersecretary for studies at the ministry of civil service and Suleiman Bin Abdullah Bin Suleiman Al-Hudaib as education expert at the ministry of education.