Saudi Arabia, Four Countries Sign Cybersecurity MoUs

The 2023 edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum, held in Riyadh
The 2023 edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum, held in Riyadh
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Saudi Arabia, Four Countries Sign Cybersecurity MoUs

The 2023 edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum, held in Riyadh
The 2023 edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum, held in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia’s National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA) signed four memoranda of understanding (MoUs) for cooperation in cybersecurity with national bodies in Qatar, Romania, Spain, and Kuwait on the sidelines of the third edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF).

The MoUs were signed between the Saudi NCA and Qatar’s National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA), Romania’s National Cyber Security Directorate (DNSC), the Spanish National Cybersecurity Institute (INCIBE), and Kuwait’s National Cyber Security Center (NCSC).

The 2023 edition of the Global Cybersecurity Forum, held in Riyadh under the theme “Charting Shared Priorities in Cyberspace,” concluded Thursday after heavy global participation, including 150 high-level speakers and attendees from 120 countries.
The two-day GCF served as a platform for discussing strategic orientations and crucial international issues in the cyberspace domain.

Participants from around the world engaged in dialogue on cooperation and unified efforts in cybersecurity and discussed maximizing opportunities, transferring knowledge, and enhancing human and technical capabilities in the sector.

The forum featured 35 discussion sessions, attended by decision-makers, CEOs, and senior officials from the public and private sectors at both the local and international levels.



Oil Up as Israel, Hezbollah Trade Accusations of Ceasefire Violation

FILE - An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, makes an appearance over pumpjacks as they draw out oil and gas from well heads near Cremona, Alberta, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
FILE - An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, makes an appearance over pumpjacks as they draw out oil and gas from well heads near Cremona, Alberta, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
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Oil Up as Israel, Hezbollah Trade Accusations of Ceasefire Violation

FILE - An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, makes an appearance over pumpjacks as they draw out oil and gas from well heads near Cremona, Alberta, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
FILE - An aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, makes an appearance over pumpjacks as they draw out oil and gas from well heads near Cremona, Alberta, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

Oil prices ticked up on Thursday after Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah traded accusations that their ceasefire had been violated, and as Israeli tanks fired on south Lebanon.

OPEC+ also delayed by a few days a meeting likely to extend production cuts.

Brent crude futures edged up by 30 cents, or 0.4%, to $73.13 a barrel by 1741 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 23 cents, 0.3%, at $68.93. Trading was thin because of the US Thanksgiving holiday, Reuters reported.
Israel's military said the ceasefire was violated after what it called suspects, some in vehicles, arrived at several areas in the southern zone.
The deal, which took effect on Wednesday, was intended to allow people in both countries to start returning to homes in border areas shattered by 14 months of fighting.
The Middle East is one of the world's major oil-producing regions, and while the ongoing conflict has not so far not impacted supply it has been reflected in a risk premium for traders.
Elsewhere, OPEC+, comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia, delayed its next policy meeting to Dec. 5 from Dec. 1 to avoid a conflict with another event.
Also supporting prices, OPEC+ sources have said there will again be discussion over another delay to an oil output increase scheduled for January.
"It's highly unlikely they are going to announce an increase production at this meeting," said Rory Johnston, analyst at Commodity Context.
The group pumps about half the world's oil but has maintained production cuts to support prices. It hopes to unwind those cuts, but weak global demand has forced it to delay the start of gradual increases.
A further delay has mostly been factored in to oil prices already, said Suvro Sarkar at DBS Bank. "The only question is whether it's a one-month pushback, or three, or even longer."
Depressing prices slightly, US gasoline stocks rose 3.3 million barrels in the week ending Nov. 22, the US Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday, countering expectations of a small draw in fuel stocks ahead of holiday travel.
Slowing fuel demand growth in top consumers China and the US has weighed on oil prices this year.