Saudi Arabia Stresses its Ongoing Efforts to Tackle Situation in Gaza, Lebanon

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the cabinet session in Riyadh. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the cabinet session in Riyadh. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia Stresses its Ongoing Efforts to Tackle Situation in Gaza, Lebanon

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the cabinet session in Riyadh. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chairs the cabinet session in Riyadh. (SPA)

The Saudi government underscored on Tuesday the Kingdom’s ongoing political and humanitarian efforts to tackle the situation in Gaza and its surroundings, and in Lebanon.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, chaired the cabinet session that was held in Riyadh.

The cabinet also highlighted the air bridge the Kingdom has launched to provide humanitarian aid to the Lebanese people amid the Israeli assault on their country.

Crown Prince Mohammed briefed the ministers on the telephone call he received from French President Emmanuel Macron and the outcomes of the meeting he held with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Riyadh last week.

Crown Prince Mohammed’s talks with the officials focused on regional developments and efforts exerted towards them.

Minister of Media Salman Al-Dossary said the cabinet reviewed the Kingdom's participation in bilateral and multilateral meetings, with the objective of boosting its relations with countries worldwide in various sectors, facilitating coordination to address issues and challenges of international significance, and achieving shared interests.

The cabinet renewed the Kingdom's emphasis, at the UN Conference on Victims of Terrorism, on the importance of international efforts to curb extremist ideologies and rhetoric, eradicate terrorism, provide support and care for all victims, and empower them through education and rehabilitation.

The minister said the cabinet reiterated the key points of the Kingdom's opening statement at the 89th session of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, which reaffirmed the commitment to women's rights, to lifting their status in society, and to continuing reforms that empower women and encourage their participation in development.

At the domestic level, Al-Dossary said the Cabinet praised the successful conclusion of the Global Logistics Forum held in Riyadh under the patronage of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. It hoped that its outcomes will contribute to boosting cooperation, developing logistics services and supply chains, and supporting economic growth and sustainable development.

Moreover, the cabinet declared that King Salman bin Abdulaziz Royal Reserve making it on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Green List, alongside the Ibex Reserve, is consistent with the Kingdom's ongoing efforts in environment conservation. The move helps in realizing the objectives of the Saudi Green Initiative, which aims to declare 30% of terrestrial and marine regions protected areas by 2030.

The cabinet reviewed several reports on the performance of public agencies over the past period, their contributions to achieving the targets of the Saudi Vision 2030, and the significant progress seen in the indicators and initiatives of national strategies.



Riyadh, Doha to Pay Back Syria's Debt to World Bank

One of the meetings held at the IMF in Washington. SPA
One of the meetings held at the IMF in Washington. SPA
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Riyadh, Doha to Pay Back Syria's Debt to World Bank

One of the meetings held at the IMF in Washington. SPA
One of the meetings held at the IMF in Washington. SPA

Saudi Arabia and Qatar said Sunday they will pay Syria’s outstanding arrears of around $15 million to the World Bank.

A joint statement by the finance ministries of Saudi Arabia and Qatar said the decision to pay Syria’s debt to the World Bank was made during this month's meetings in Washington by the World Bank and IMF.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry thanked the two countries for paying the debt, saying it opens the way for activating cooperation toward recovery and reconstruction.
The joint Saudi-Qatari statement said the payment of Syria’s loans will facilitate the resumption of World Bank support and activities in Syria that have been stalled for more than 14 years.

The statement added that the loan payment will allow Syria to take allotments from the World Bank in the near future for “vital sectors.”

Both countries also called on "international and regional financial institutions to promptly resume and expand their development engagement in Syria."
In a reflection of Riyadh’s continued support for Syria’s stability and economic recovery, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed AlJadaan has issued a joint statement with Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva, and Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank Group (WBG), saying “priority will be given to efforts to meet the critical needs of the Syrian people, institutional rebuilding, capacity development, policy reforms, and the development of a national economic recovery strategy.”

The statement that was issued on Thursday on the sidelines of the 2025WBG/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, said the three sides co-hosted a high-level roundtable for Syria, bringing together the Syrian authorities, finance ministers and key stakeholders from multilateral and regional financial institutions, as well as economic and development partners.

"Building on earlier discussions –including at the Paris Conference on Syria (February 13), the Al Ula roundtable on February 16, and Brussels IX conference (March 17)— this event provided a platform for the Syrian authorities to present their ongoing efforts to stabilize and rebuild their country, reduce poverty, and achieve long-term economic development,” said the statement.