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Saudi Arabia, China Sign MoU to Develop Air Transport Cooperation

The MoU was signed during the visit to China of Saudi officials as part of ongoing cooperation between the two countries in air transportation. SPA
The MoU was signed during the visit to China of Saudi officials as part of ongoing cooperation between the two countries in air transportation. SPA
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Saudi Arabia, China Sign MoU to Develop Air Transport Cooperation

The MoU was signed during the visit to China of Saudi officials as part of ongoing cooperation between the two countries in air transportation. SPA
The MoU was signed during the visit to China of Saudi officials as part of ongoing cooperation between the two countries in air transportation. SPA

General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) President Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Dauilej on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the field of air transportation with Civil Aviation Administration of China Administrator Song Zhiyong.
The MoU was signed during the visit to China of Saudi civil-aviation officials as part of the ongoing cooperation between the two countries in the air transportation sector.
The areas of cooperation outlined in the MoU include expanding the number of air transportation stops, promoting air traffic, and developing and regulating frameworks for cooperation in the field of transportation and air freight between the two nations.
The MoU also includes an initial consensus to update the existing agreement between the Kingdom and China in this field, with the aim of enhancing global connectivity in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and the Saudi Aviation Strategy.
These efforts seek to enhance trade exchange and stimulate economic growth between the two countries.

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Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
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Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)

The United States on Thursday called on Israel to extend its cooperation with Palestinian banks for another year, to avoid blocking vital transactions in the occupied West Bank.

"I am glad that Israel has allowed its banks to continue cooperating with Palestinian banks, but I remain convinced that a one-year extension of the waiver to facilitate this cooperation is needed," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday, on the sidelines of a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Rio de Janeiro.

In May, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened to cut off a vital banking channel between Israel and the West Bank in response to three European countries recognizing the State of Palestine.

On June 30, however, Smotrich extended a waiver that allows cooperation between Israel's banking system and Palestinian banks in the occupied West Bank for four months, according to Israeli media, according to AFP.

The Times of Israel newspaper reported that the decision on the waiver was made at a cabinet meeting in a "move that saw Israel legalize several West Bank settlement outposts."

The waiver was due to expire at the end of June, and the extension permitted Israeli banks to process payments for salaries and services to the Palestinian Authority in shekels, averting a blow to a Palestinian economy already devastated by the war in Gaza.

The Israeli threat raised serious concerns in the United States, which said at the time it feared "a humanitarian crisis" if banking ties were cut.

According to Washington, these banking channels are key to nearly $8 billion of imports from Israel to the West Bank, including electricity, water, fuel and food.