The number of Saudi applicants for visas to the United States of America has gone up by 30 percent from last year, Ambassador Michael Kirby, Assistant Undersecretary at the US Department of State, has said. Kirby said that staff numbers has been increased at the US embassy in Riyadh as well as the consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran in order to cope with the extra demand. In a meeting on Sunday with Ambassador Muhammad Bin Abdul Rahman Al-Salloum, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Consular Affairs in Riyadh, Kirby said that US airport entry procedures have been cut to approximately two hours, a significant decrease on previous waits of between eight to 10 hours. “The authorities concerned are working to reduce the waiting period even further,” Kirby said, noting that the introduction of the new electronic system would provide Saudi nationals with more and better services. Also at Sunday's meeting were the directors general of administrations from the Deputy Ministry for Consular Affairs and members of the Child Custody Committee that hears cases involving mixed Saudi
