Major Contracts, Deals on Day Two of Saudi World Defense Show

The second day of the World Defense Show, founded by Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI), saw a flurry of deals and contracts announced by local, regional, and international defense companies.
These deals included agreements for manufacturing and localizing defense systems, joint manufacturing ventures, and various partnerships in the defense sector.
These agreements align with Riyadh’s efforts to strengthen military industries by localizing defense manufacturing.
At the exhibition, which concludes on Feb.8, the Saudi Ministry of Investment and the GAMI revealed signing 11 partnership agreements with private companies.
Notable partners include Airbus, Lockheed Martin, Leonardo from Italy, IBM from the US for information technology, and Türkiye’s Rocketsan for weapons manufacturing.
These agreements aim to fulfill strategic objectives for Saudi Arabia’s military industries, such as localizing defense manufacturing, enhancing military readiness, boosting industrial participation, and creating promising investment opportunities.
They also support the goals of the Kingdom’s national transformation plan, “Vision 2030,” aiming to localize 50% of military expenditure by 2030 and increase investment contributions to the gross domestic product.
Under the oversight of Saudi Investment Minister Engineer Khalid Al-Falih and GAMI Governor Engineer Ahmed Al-Ohali, a set of agreements were signed.
These agreements cover important areas like boosting technology transfer, setting up local production lines, and training local talent in the defense sector.
GAMI highlighted that the focus of the exhibition is on showcasing the latest advancements across various defense sectors like land, sea, air, space, and security.
These agreements align with GAMI’s strategy to develop investment in the sector by supporting local content and expanding opportunities for skilled national workers.
The aim is to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s defense capabilities and establish the kingdom as a regional and global hub for defense industries.
On his part, Al-Ohali emphasized that these agreements result from ongoing efforts to develop and localize the military industries, enhancing their competitiveness and workforce confidence.
According to the governor, partnerships with the Saudi Investment Ministry and collaborating companies will contribute to strengthening Saudi Arabia’s military industrial capabilities, promoting strategic independence, and optimizing expenditure efficiency.
Moreover, US weapon maker Lockheed Martin has signed agreements for Saudi Arabian companies to manufacture parts of its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system.
A statement by Lockheed Martin revealed that these sub-contracts will enhance manufacturing capabilities in Saudi Arabia and transfer expertise to strengthen the country’s defense industry.
The main terms of the THAAD defense system procurement contracts stipulate the localization of work in Saudi Arabia, in line with the priorities of Vision 2030 to develop and localize its military industries.
Saudi Arabia is poised to take advantage of these strategies through qualitative international defense partnerships with Lockheed Martin and other major companies, which are manufacturers of innovative equipment that brings mutual benefits to all the parties involved.
Additionally, state-owned Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) signed a preliminary agreement with Qatar’s Barzan Holdings.
Barzan explained that the initial agreement with SAMI focuses on joint investment and development.
The deal aims to explore shared interests in defense industries, with both sides committed to boosting their collaboration in the future, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Also at the World Defense Show, Airbus restated its commitment to boosting local skills and expertise in Saudi Arabia and the wider region.
Mikail Houari, President of Airbus in Africa and the Middle East, emphasized that their engagement goes beyond just selling products.
They aim to provide guidance, training, and support, contributing to job creation and sustainable economic growth in the area.
The Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) plans to expand its presence in the Middle East and Africa.
KAI’s CEO stressed the importance of participating in exhibitions like the World Defense Show to boost the company’s business in these regions.

China announced Friday that it would expand visa-free entry to citizens of nine more countries as it seeks to boost tourism and business travel to help revive a sluggish economy.
Starting Nov. 30, travelers from Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia and Japan will be able to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
That will bring to 38 the number of countries that have been granted visa-free access since last year. Only three countries had visa-free access previously, and theirs had been eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The permitted length of stay for visa-free entry is being increased from the previous 15 days, Lin said, and people participating in exchanges will be eligible for the first time. China has been pushing people-to-people exchange between students, academics and others to try to improve its sometimes strained relations with other countries, The Associated Press reported.
China strictly restricted entry during the pandemic and ended its restrictions much later than most other countries. It restored the previous visa-free access for citizens of Brunei and Singapore in July 2023, and then expanded visa-free entry to six more countries — France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia — on Dec. 1 of last year.
The program has since been expanded in tranches. Some countries have announced visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, notably Thailand, which wants to bring back Chinese tourists.
For the three months from July through September this year, China recorded 8.2 million entries by foreigners, of which 4.9 million were visa-free, the official Xinhua News Agency said, quoting a Foreign Ministry consular official.

Major Contracts, Deals on Day Two of Saudi World Defense Show