The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Monday. At the outset of the session, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Cabinet on the outcomes of his talks with the Prime Minister of Malaysia Mohammad Najib Abdulrazzak, stressing deep bilateral relations between the two sisterly countries and the keenness of both sides on enhancing them in various fields. The Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Adel bin Zaid Altoraifi said in a statement to Saudi Press Agency following the session that the Cabinet commended the relations of friendship and close cooperation between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the French Republic, their development at all levels and the common desire to develop new fields of cooperation; appreciating the joint statement issued on the occasion of the conclusion of the official visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior to the French Republic and his talks with President Francois Hollande and senior officials, and the statement's expression of the great convergence of views between the two sides on regional issues of common interest and possible ways to enhance international security and stability. The Minister pointed out that the Cabinet welcomed the statement of the General Secretariat of the Council of Arab Interior Ministers issued at the conclusion of meetings of the 33rd session of the Council of Arab Interior Ministers in the Tunisian capital and '' Tunisia Declaration'' and its reconfirmation of the firm strong condemnation of terrorism and all forms of supporting and financing it and the state's terrorism being practiced by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories; its absolute condemnation of storming the embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its consulate in Iran; its strong condemnation of Iranian activities aiming at destabilizing the security and stability in the Kingdom of Bahrain and a number of Arab countries; and its strong condemnation and denunciation of dangerous practices and acts being carried out by the terrorist Hezbollah party to destabilize security and social peace in some Arab countries. It also welcomed the declaration's full support for the measures taken by all member states to fight Al-Qaeda and ISIS terrorist organizations and its full support for the Arab coalition and appreciation of the coalition's efforts being exerted for supporting legitimacy in the Republic of Yemen and confronting terrorist Al-Qaida, ISIS and Houthi militias. The Cabinet reiterated in this context, the contents of the speech delivered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, and Honorary President of the Council of Arab Interior Ministers at the meeting, and his confirmation that security is the foundation of security and stability and without it, balances are destabilized, rights are violated and countries are lost; and that combating crime in its intellectual development and behavioral impact is a common responsibility where societal awareness supports security efforts. It also reiterated the decision that was taken by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) for Arab States, considering Hezbollah's militias, leaders, affiliated factions and organizations as a terrorist organization due to the continuing hostilities being committed by the elements of these militias and their flagrant violation of the sovereignty of the GCC member countries and their security and stability as well as their practices in a number of Arab countries that are contrary to the moral and humanitarian values and principles, and the international law in addition to their threat to Arab national security. The Cabinet re-emphasized the contents of the speech delivered by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia before the 31st session of Human Rights Council in Geneva in which it confirmed its commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights based on its approach derived from the principles of Islamic Sharia, which necessitated these rights, and the speech's tackling of the serious challenges affecting human rights in different parts of the world, and its indication to what has been witnessing by the Kingdom of ongoing development process reflecting its firm belief in the importance of comprehensive development which focuses on the human beings as the basic core of development, and the great interest given by the Kingdom to take into account the principle of full independence of its judiciary and the need to respect the judicial system and the inadmissibility of intervention in the functioning of the judiciary, its procedures or provisions, and based on this principle, the Kingdom don't accept any interference in its judiciary or its independence. The Cabinet briefed on the issues listed on its agenda, including issues it co-participated in their study with the Shura Council. The Cabinet has decided the following: Dr. Adel bin Zaid Altoraifi noted that the Cabinet was briefed on topics on its agenda, including topics co-shared by the Shura Council in their studies and decided the following: First: The cabinet authorized the Crown Prince, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior - or his deputy - to discuss with the Niger's side a draft security cooperation agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Niger, sign it, and submit the final version for further statutory procedures. Second: The Cabinet authorized the Deputy Crown Prince, Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense - or his deputy - to discuss with the Djiboutian side a draft agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Djibouti on cooperation in the military field, sign it, and submit the final version for further statutory procedures. Third: The Cabinet approved the application of the decision of the Supreme Council of Gulf Cooperation Council for Arab States issued in its (thirtieth) session held in Kuwait on 27 - 28/12/1430 AH and the decision of the Supreme Council of Gulf Cooperation Council for Arab States issued in its (thirty-fifth) session held in Doha on 17/02/1436 AH on the adoption of Muscat document for unified system (law) for real estate in kind registration of the Gulf Cooperation Council for Arab States as a guideline for a four-year term. Fourth: The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Finance - or his deputy - to sign a draft agreement between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Georgia on the avoidance of double taxation with respect to taxes on income and capital and prevention of tax evasion, and the attaching draft protocol, and submit the final version for further statutory procedures. The cabinet approved an arrangement in the field of employment of domestic workers between the Ministry of Labor of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and each of the Ministry of labor in charge of administrative reforms of the Republic of Djibouti and the Ministry of Labor, employment and social security of the Republic of Niger, signed in Geneva on 17/08/1436 H. Sixth: Having seen the recommendations of a study conducted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the tuition fees for the dependants of government officials stationed abroad as well as Saudis on scholarships outside the country, the Cabinet approved a number of arrangements, including the following : 1 - School-age dependants of government officials stationed outside the Kingdom as well as Saudi students on scholarships abroad who were subject to instructions to cut their missions and return to the Kingdom due to political or security conditions or natural disasters or deteriorating health conditions in the countries of their current residence, and whose personal situations and educational obligations make it necessary to enroll them in foreign or private schools inside the Kingdom, will continue to enjoy receiving tuition fees and subsidies inside the Kingdom. 2 - Once the reasons preventing the government officials stationed outside the Kingdom and those offered scholarships abroad from accompanying their children were announced as no longer functioning, tuition fees should be stopped without influencing their educational careers. 3 - The Ministry of Education is to direct its affiliated authorities to facilitate enrolling the dependants of the categories mentioned above who would like to complete their studies in public schools. Seventh: The Cabinet approved the agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Russian Federation on cooperation in the field of peaceful usage of atomic energy, which was signed in St. Petersburg dated 01/09/1436 H. To this effect, a royal decree is being drafted. Eighth: The Cabinet approved the following transfers and appointments: 1- Transfer of Prince Naif bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud from the post of administrative consultant at the 15th rank at the Ministry of Defense to the post of ambassador at the foreign ministry 2- appointment of Abdulhakeem bin Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Shuaibi in the position of administrative consultant at the 15th rank at the Commission for Investigation and General Prosecution 3- appointment of Dr. Marwan bin Hasan bin Mohammed Ismail as committee coordinator at the 15th rank at the Secretariat General of the Council of Ministers 4- appointment of Abdullah bin Abdulrahman bin Abdullah Al-Sibaibani as financial consultant at the 14th rank at the ministry of defense 5- appointment of Abdullah bin Shabnan bin Saeed Al-Shahrani as tax consultant at the 14th rank at the Zakat (alms) and Income department 6- appointment of the following in the position of minister plenipotentiary at the foreign ministry: - Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Awad - Fahd bin Abdullah bin Mohammed Al-Sifayan - Ali bin Mubarak bin Giaithen Al-Arjani - Saeed bin Omar bin Abdullah Al-Ghamdi. The Cabinet was them briefed on the outcome of the 34th ordinary meeting of the GCC interior ministers which was held in Doha, Qatar, and a report on the progress of the national program for developing industrial complexes for the year 2014.
