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Saudi Arabia, Egypt Sign MoU to Promote Exports, Automobile Industry

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chairs talks between the Egyptian side, headed by Minister of Industry Ahmed Samir, and his Saudi counterpart, Bandar al-Khorayef (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chairs talks between the Egyptian side, headed by Minister of Industry Ahmed Samir, and his Saudi counterpart, Bandar al-Khorayef (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia, Egypt Sign MoU to Promote Exports, Automobile Industry

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chairs talks between the Egyptian side, headed by Minister of Industry Ahmed Samir, and his Saudi counterpart, Bandar al-Khorayef (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chairs talks between the Egyptian side, headed by Minister of Industry Ahmed Samir, and his Saudi counterpart, Bandar al-Khorayef (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Egypt and Saudi Arabia signed on Sunday two memorandums of understanding (MoU) in developing non-oil exports and developing their automobile industries.

The Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry, Ahmed Samir, and Saudi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar al-Khorayef, witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Egyptian Export Development Authority and its Saudi counterpart.

The statement added that the two sides also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Valeo Egypt company and the Saudi National Industrial Development Center in developing the automotive industry.

Khorayef started an official visit to Egypt on Saturday as part of Saudi Arabia's keenness to enhance the role of the mining and industrial sectors.

Later, the Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly received the Saudi Minister of Industry.

They discussed ways to enhance industry cooperation and integration between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Madbouly noted the enormous potential and human resources that the two countries possess, adding that Egypt is a huge market and a gateway to the continent of Africa.

He stressed the importance of having an agreement between the two countries that enables the private sector to achieve integration and partnership in the supply and production chains.

During the meeting, Minister Samir noted that Egyptian officials held meetings with their Saudi counterparts. They agreed on a set of joint work issues in industry, namely the industrial integration between the two countries.

The Egyptian minister said that cooperation in specific sectors would improve in the next stage, including the food and drug security industries and promoting exports to African markets.

For his part, the Saudi Minister explained that the national industry strategy aims to create a competitive and sustainable industrial economy.

Saudi Arabia is looking forward to integration with Egypt in the industries identified by the strategy to achieve food and drug security and cooperation for optimal utilization and creation of added value in the petrochemical and mining industries and the automotive industry.

Khorayef said the visit to Egypt would include a tour of several industrial sites and meetings with the private sector.

 

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US Mulls Plan to Disrupt Iran's Oil by Halting Vessels at Sea

The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy transfers crude oil from the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Lana (former Pegas), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Costas Baltas/File Photo
The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy transfers crude oil from the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Lana (former Pegas), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Costas Baltas/File Photo
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US Mulls Plan to Disrupt Iran's Oil by Halting Vessels at Sea

The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy transfers crude oil from the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Lana (former Pegas), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Costas Baltas/File Photo
The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy transfers crude oil from the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Lana (former Pegas), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Costas Baltas/File Photo

US President Donald Trump's administration is considering a plan to stop and inspect Iranian oil tankers at sea under an international accord aimed at countering the spread of weapons of mass destruction, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Trump has vowed to restore a "maximum pressure" campaign to isolate Iran from the global economy and drive its oil exports to zero, in order to stop the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Trump hit Iran with two waves of fresh sanctions in the first weeks of his second-term, targeting companies and the so-called shadow fleet of ageing oil tankers that sail without Western insurance and transport crude from sanctioned countries.

Those moves have largely been in line with the limited measures implemented during former President Joe Biden's administration, during which Iran succeeded in ramping up oil exports through complex smuggling networks.

Trump officials are now looking at ways for allied countries to stop and inspect ships sailing through critical chokepoints such as the Malacca Strait in Asia and other sea lanes, according to six sources who asked not to be named due to the sensitive subject.

That would delay delivery of crude to refiners. It could also expose parties involved in facilitating the trade to reputational damage and sanctions, the sources said.

"You don’t have to sink ships or arrest people to have that chilling effect that this is just not worth the risk," one of the sources said.

"The delay in delivery ... instills uncertainty in that illicit trade network."

The administration was examining whether inspections at sea could be conducted under the auspices of the Proliferation Security Initiative launched in 2003, which aims to prevent the trafficking of weapons of mass destruction.

The US drove that initiative, which has been signed by over 100 governments.

This mechanism could enable foreign governments to target Iran's oil shipments at Washington's request, one of the sources said, effectively delaying deliveries and hitting supply chains Tehran relies upon for revenue.

The National Security Council, which formulates policy in the White House, was looking into possible inspections at sea, two of the sources said.

It was unclear if Washington had yet approached any signatories to the Proliferation Security Initiative to test their willingness to cooperate with the proposal.

John Bolton, who was the US lead negotiator for the initiative when it was formed, told Reuters: "it would be fully justified" to use the initiative to slow down Iran oil exports. He noted that selling oil was "obviously critical to raise revenue for the government of Iran to conduct both its proliferation activities and support for terrorism."

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Iran's parliament on March 2 that Trump "has once again signed an order sanctioning many of our ships at sea, leaving them uncertain about how to unload their oil and gas cargo". He was referring to Trump's latest round of sanctions.