Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet session on Tuesday at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah. The Cabinet was briefed on the talks held by Saudi Arabia with several countries, including the phone call between His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Crown Prince of the State of Kuwait, during which they reviewed bilateral relations and issues of common concern. The Cabinet also followed up on developments regarding the agreement to resume relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the content of the discussions held by the two countries in Beijing, which centred around the agreement and coordinating the necessary steps to resume diplomatic and consular work between the two countries. The discussions stressed the importance of activating and pursuing the implementation of the Beijing Agreement, thus enhancing mutual trust and expanding cooperation, and contributing to realising security, stability and prosperity in the region. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, Minister of Media Salman bin Yousef Al-Dosari said that the Cabinet also inquired about the quality of services offered to visitors to the Two Holy Mosques during the Holy Month of Ramadan by all agencies involved. The Cabinet stressed that the Kingdom's advanced position in a number of international indexes related to the areas of smart cities, aviation security and artificial intelligence, is a reflection of the attention and support given by the state to these sectors and others, to enable them to continue competing globally in these fields and global entrepreneurship. The minister added that the Cabinet commended the government's attention and care to support charity work, promote righteousness, giving, social responsibility and solidarity among members of the society, through its National Campaign for Charitable Work launched by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince with two generous donations of SAR70 million. The Cabinet members also commended the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, upon a recommendation by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, to extend the Citizen Account Programme and Temporary Additional Support for Beneficiaries for four months, in addition to continuing registration in the programme, which is part of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and of the Crown Prince's endeavours to protect beneficiary households from the repercussions of the global price hikes. The Cabinet was briefed on several issues on its agenda and issued the following decisions: First: Authorizing the Minister of Energy – or a deputy – to hold talks with the Turkish sides regarding a draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the governments of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Turkiye in the energy field. Second: Approving a memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Energy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the National Energy Administration of the People's Republic of China in the field of clean hydrogen energy. Third: Authorizing the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture – or a deputy – to hold talks with the Chinese side regarding a draft memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the field of agriculture. Fourth: Approving a memorandum of understanding on environmental protection between the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision of the Kyrgyz Republic. Fifth: Approving a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in tourism between the Ministry of Tourism of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Costa Rican Tourism Institute. Sixth: Approving a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of promoting direct investment between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand. Seventh: Approving a memorandum of understanding between Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the State Taxation Administration of the People's Republic of China for cooperation in the field of tax administration. Eighth: Authorizing the Minister of Transport and Logistic Services, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Authority of Civil Aviation - or a deputy - to sign a draft agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the field of air transport services. Ninth: Appointing Abdulkarim bin Ibrahim Al-Nafeh, Eng. Mosaed bin Suleiman Al-Ohali, and Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al-Suwailem, members of the Board of Directors of the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority, as specialists and experienced members in fields related to the Authority's work. Tenth: Approving the final accounts of the Human Resources Development Fund, General Authority for Statistics, Local Content and Government Procurement Authority, and King Fahd Causeway Authority for previous fiscal years. The Cabinet also reviewed several issues on its agenda and took the necessary procedures in their regard.
