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 Tuesday afternoon. At the outset of the session, the King briefed the cabinet on telephone contacts with President Donald Trump of the United States of America during which latest developments in the region were discussed and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the Republic of Turkey and King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of the Kingdom of Bahrain during which bilateral historical, distinguished and close relationships were asserted with the keenness of all to strengthen and develop them. The Cabinet welcomed the announcement by the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey to respond to the request of the Kingdom to form a joint working team bringing together specialists from the two countries to reveal the circumstances of the disappearance of Saudi citizen Jamal bin Ahmed Khashoggi in Istanbul, Republic of Turkey. The Minister of Media Dr. Awwad bin Saleh Al-Awwad said in his statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session that the Cabinet expressed its appreciation to all Islamic, Arab and friendly countries and Arab and international organizations, parliaments and authorities as well as to the wise people around the world who have preferred wisdom, deliberation and the search for truth instead of rushing and seeking to exploit rumors and accusations. The Cabinet also discussed the International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s estimates on increasing the growth rates of the Kingdom's economy in the World Economic Outlook's Report 2018-2019 to reach 2.2% and 2.4%, respectively, and it demonstrates the effectiveness and positive impact of economic reforms and financial measures being taken by the Kingdom in accordance with Fiscal Balance Program within the framework of Vision 2030. The Minister of Media stated that the Cabinet pointed to the Kingdom's assertion before the United Nations in New York of its commitment to the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international legitimacy as the two cornerstones of its foreign policy and the Kingdom's support for the contents of the statements of the Arab Group and the Non-Aligned Movement so as to achieve the goals of the elimination of nuclear weapons, and to recognize the fact that the international community needs to adopt the existing treaties and legal and ethical frameworks aimed at reaching a nuclear-weapon-free world, particularly in the Middle East. --More 15:38 LOCAL TIME 12:38 GMT 0017 www.spa.gov.sa/1828907
