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AlUla Royal Commission Signs Strategic Partnership with China's Henan Province

AlUla Governorate and Henan Province are working towards protecting cultural heritage - SPA
AlUla Governorate and Henan Province are working towards protecting cultural heritage - SPA
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AlUla Royal Commission Signs Strategic Partnership with China's Henan Province

AlUla Governorate and Henan Province are working towards protecting cultural heritage - SPA
AlUla Governorate and Henan Province are working towards protecting cultural heritage - SPA

The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) signed a strategic partnership with the Cultural Heritage Administration of Henan Province, aimed at preserving heritage.
The signing comes in line with the RCU's goals to enhance the global partnership network within the framework of the Saudi-Chinese partnership.
The partnership includes enhancing knowledge and shared resources with a focus on archaeology, preserving cultural heritage and museums, research collaboration, talent development, tourism, and other cultural exchanges.
The partnership includes establishing a technology-driven archaeological laboratory, conducting excavation activities, engaging in research, and fostering connections between heritage sites in AlUla and Henan.
Additionally, it involves implementing collaborative exchange programs, participating in exhibitions and events, and utilizing museum technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality.
AlUla has joined as a founding member of the International Tourism Alliance of Silk Road Cities, within the framework of supporting cultural cooperation and connectivity between Saudi Arabia and China.
The alliance aims to lay the foundations for long-term fruitful cooperation and knowledge exchange among cities of significant tourism, historical, and cultural importance within and beyond China.
With its membership among the 58 founding cities from 26 countries across different continents, AlUla will participate in international forums, delegations, and events to enhance tourism and sustainable development in the northwestern region of the Arabian Peninsula and among the alliance's member cities, SPA reported.
AlUla Governorate and Henan Province are working towards protecting cultural heritage, given their rich history as crossroads of civilizations. AlUla has been home to successive civilizations for over 200,000 years, while Henan is the third-largest province in China with a population of 100 million and houses five out of six archaeological projects on the origins of Chinese civilization.
Both AlUla and Henan are home to UNESCO World Heritage sites with a shared history spanning over 1,400 years along the ancient incense and Silk Roads, representing a common heritage as capitals of ancient empires.
The agreement coincides with the exhibition "AlUla, Wonder of Arabia," currently held at the Palace Museum in Beijing, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, until April 11. This exhibition has attracted over 250,000 visitors. It features several sections, exhibits, archaeological pieces, and heritage items from historical sites in AlUla.
The partnership comes along with programs and initiatives aligned with AlUla Vision in harmony with Saudi Vision 2030.

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Australia Bans Uranium Mining at Indigenous Site

A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
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Australia Bans Uranium Mining at Indigenous Site

A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)

Australia moved Saturday to ban mining at one of the world's largest high-grade uranium deposits, highlighting the site's "enduring connection" to Indigenous Australians.

The Jabiluka deposit in northern Australia is surrounded by the heritage-listed Kakadu national park, a tropical expanse of gorges and waterfalls featured in the first "Crocodile Dundee" film.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the national park would be extended to include the Jabiluka site -- which has never been mined -- honoring the decades-long desires of the Mirrar people.

"They were seeking a guarantee that there would never be uranium mining on their land," Albanese told a crowd of Labor Party supporters in Sydney.

"This means there will never be mining at Jabiluka," he added.

Archaeologists discovered a buried trove of stone axes and tools near the Jabiluka site in 2017, which they dated at tens of thousands of years old.

The find was "proof of the extraordinary and enduring connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander have had with our land", Albanese said.

"The Mirrar people have loved and cared for their land for more than 60,000 years.

"That beautiful part of Australia is home to some of the oldest rock art in the world," he added.

Discovered in the early 1970s, efforts to exploit the Jabiluka deposit have for decades been tied-up in legal wrangling between Indigenous custodians and mining companies.

It is one of the world's largest unexploited high-grade uranium deposits, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Rio Tinto-controlled company Energy Resources of Australia previously held mining leases at Jabiluka.

The conservation of Indigenous sites has come under intense scrutiny in Australia after mining company Rio Tinto blew up the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge rock shelters in 2020.

Australia's conservative opposition has vowed to build nuclear power plants across the country if it wins the next election, overturning a 26-year nuclear ban.