Special to WorldTribune.com Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has unveiled a plan aimed at kicking the kingdom’s “addiction” to oil. The 31-year-old prince believes his recently-unveiled “Vision 2030” would transform the world’s top oil exporter into a global investment powerhouse. Paving the way, Mohammed said, would be the initial public offering (IPO) of […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Saudi Arabia has taken out a $10 billion loan from several major banks to plug a growing budget deficit caused by falling crude oil prices. The five-year loan is Saudi Arabia’s first international debt issuance in 25 years, Financial Times reported on April 20. Participating lenders include U.S. banks JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Leaders of Gulf Arab states have pledged solidarity with Morocco in its dispute with the UN over the fate of Western Sahara. Morocco expelled dozens of UN staff from the mission in Western Sahara, known as MINURSO, last month after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon referred to Morocco’s 1975 annexation of the region […]
Special to WorldTribune.com U.S. President Barack Obama, who has a habit of bowing to Saudi royalty, flew into Riyadh on April 20. This time, though, there was no one on hand for Obama to bow to. The royal family gave Obama the royal snub. Saudi King Salman didn’t greet the president at King Khalid International Airport, nor […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Saudi Arabia has threatened to sell off $750 billion in U.S. assets it owns if Congress passes legislation holding the kingdom responsible in any way for the attacks of September 11, 2001, the N.Y. Times reported. Meanwhile, the Obama administration has tried to stop Congress from passing the bipartisan Senate legislation. Congress […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Iran, which has refused to freeze its oil output, declined to attend a crucial OPEC meeting on the oil cartel’s production levels. Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said on April 16 that he would not only skip the Doha talks, but would not be a signatory to any deal he said […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Public outrage has spurred Saudi Arabia to strip powers from its 10,000 religious police and require them to be “kinder and gentler.” Saudi authorities have stripped the powers of pursuit and arrest from the Haia force, also known as the Mutawa and formerly the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Amid heavy criticism, Egyptian President Abdul Fatah Sisi has defended the transfer of two strategic Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia. In a TV address on April 13, Sisi said Egypt did not give up the territory but rather “restored” the rights of Saudi Arabia to the islands. The islands, Sanafir and […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Citing ongoing “security threats” from Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) and Al Qaida, the United States has issued a new warning on travel to Saudi Arabia. The U.S. State Department issued the warning ahead of President Barack Obama’s planned visit to the kingdom on April 21. “U.S. citizens in Saudi […]
Special to WorldTribune.com A gripping commentary from a Saudi TV host is making waves in the Arab world. Nadine Al-Budair said during a broadcast on Rotana Khalijiyya TV that terrorists are “everywhere” and “they adhere to the religion of Islam.” In a rare moment for Arab TV, Al-Budair said no one should be surprised that […]