https://arab.news/84g22
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Riyadh on Wednesday.
During the meeting, developments in Gaza and Lebanon and efforts made with regard to them were discussed, Saudi Press Agency reported.
Relations between the Kingdom and the US were also reviewed. Blinken later met with the Kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
RIYADH: The Ministry of Defense’s health services department participated in the Global Health Exhibition in Riyadh, showcasing innovative health care models and its digital transformation journey.
Held under the theme “Invest in Health” at the Riyadh Exhibition and Convention Center in Malham from Oct. 21 to Oct. 23, the ministry’s pavilion introduced visitors to initiatives aimed at improving health care and promoting health in military communities.
The pavilion highlighted efforts in organ transplantation, humanitarian roles and community outreach through the medical air evacuation program, which assists domestic and international patient transport.
The ministry also showcased mobile hospitals, military medical support services and the advancement of women’s roles in military nursing.
A key agreement was signed with the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties to implement the Health Security Program, aimed at providing professional support for health security personnel.
Another agreement was made with the National Unified Procurement Co. to localize insulin production, supporting the government’s efforts to enhance medical and pharmaceutical industries in the Kingdom.
The Saudi Red Crescent Authority also participated, displaying advanced ambulances equipped with the latest technologies to improve response times.
The authority emphasized its role in emergency care, health awareness and digital innovation in ambulance services.
Earlier, Health Minister Fahad Al-Jalajel visited the Ministry of Interior’s pavilion, reviewing AI technologies in medical services, upcoming projects for medical cities and mobile clinic vehicles.
He also examined the Lucid electric security vehicle, designed to enhance traffic safety, and efforts in environmental preservation.
The Border Guards also presented search and rescue technologies, emergency distress devices and smart lifebuoys at the ministry’s pavilion.
SAN DIEGO: Saudi Arabia is embarking on a number of vast projects, including NEOM, the Line and the Red Sea Islands development.
And all are being hailed for their qualities aimed at making them sustainable, not just financially, but also environmentally.
In order for any of these projects to work, however, people must be able to reach them, which in itself presents challenges — railways need to cross vast areas of desert, sand moves, and dry wadi beds do not remain dry for long when a storm hits.
On the sidelines of the recent Autodesk University 2024: The Design and Make Conference in San Diego, US, Egis Group civil engineer Joao Guilherme Alves Correa spoke to Arab News about the many challenges involved in working on the ambitious transport network project that will link these various destinations.
“The environment in the Middle East keeps changing every day, every week. It is difficult to define the alignment of the corridor of the railway because there are new investments everywhere — new buildings, new infrastructures. It is complicated to incorporate all those things into the design,” he said.
He did not specify which of Saudi Arabia’s railway projects he was working on, citing confidentiality.
But currently underway or at least in the planning stages are passenger and freight services crossing hundreds of kilometers through the desert, costing billions of dollars.
The Saudi Landbridge Project will link Riyadh, Jeddah and the Red Sea project, as well as NEOM, covering nearly 1,000 km at a cost of $7 billion according to the business news website meed.com.
Work is currently scheduled to start in 2025.
Creating the Saudi rail network is uncharted territory; such a far-reaching transport network is unprecedented in the Kingdom.
“We needed to get a lot of statistical information at the beginning of the project, including the impact of weather on the area and the project,” Alves explained.
“There are wadis that you need to consider when creating a railway in the middle of the desert. It is not so simple, there is a lot of environmental stuff.”
The Gulf region is reputed for splashing out on its megaprojects, but Alves said clients are not simply settling for the biggest, most expensive projects.
“They are less conservative socially and more conservative when it comes to business and spending money,” he said.
“The client always asks us to create benchmarks of different solutions to find the most economical solutions and we need to do this with every aspect of the design whether that’s a bridge, tunnel or the railway track — it’s everywhere. I think that they (Gulf countries) are far more conservative when it comes to spending money.”
Asked whether he would consider working again with the Gulf, he said without hesitation: “I would definitely work with Gulf countries again — the investments are there, the bigger projects are there.”
Since 2021, Alves has been working on various rail projects in the region and praised the working practices.
“In that time, there has been a mix of men and women in the leading positions. In fact, I can say it is more or less the same as what we have in Europe and America,” he said.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Attorney General Sheikh Saud bin Abdullah Al-Mujib says countries should boost the sharing of expertise and joint actions to counter global criminal networks.
Speaking recently at the First Summit of the Heads of Prosecution Services of G20 countries in Brazil, Al-Mujib said this was particularly important to tackle human trafficking and cybercrime, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.
He said it was also important to use the latest technology and artificial intelligence for crime-prevention activities.
Al-Mujib underscored Saudi Arabia’s commitment to human rights, and highlighted the country’s legislative developments in this regard.
He also praised the Saudi Green Initiative, Middle East Green Initiative and other projects for combating climate change and preserving biodiversity.
Al-Mujib concluded his speech by highlighting the summit’s role in fostering cooperation among G20 prosecution offices.
On the sidelines of the gathering that took place from Oct. 20 to 22, he held meetings on judicial matters with his counterparts from Brazil, Russia and India.
RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke on the phone with Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Sudani on Tuesday, Saudi Press Agency reported.
During the call, they reviewed relations between the two countries and ways to enhance and develop them in various fields.
They also discussed the latest developments in the region and the efforts made to prevent the deterioration of the situation in Palestine and Lebanon, as well as how to spare the region from the risks of escalation.
A number of topics of common interest were also discussed, SPA added.
RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan met with Andriy Yermak, the head of the office of the Ukraine President.
The pair discussed issues of bilateral relations between their nations and developments in the Russia-Ukraine crisis, the Saudi foreign ministry said.
