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Saudi Arabia Launches 4th Industrial Revolution Center in Partnership with WEF

Saudi Arabia inaugurated the 4th Industrial Revolution Center in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Saudi Arabia inaugurated the 4th Industrial Revolution Center in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF).
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Saudi Arabia Launches 4th Industrial Revolution Center in Partnership with WEF

Saudi Arabia inaugurated the 4th Industrial Revolution Center in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Saudi Arabia inaugurated the 4th Industrial Revolution Center in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Saudi Arabia inaugurated on Wednesday the 4th Industrial Revolution Center in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Chairman of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) Abdullah al-Sawahah announced the new center on the sidelines of the first Saudi Forum for the 4th Industrial Revolution.

The inaugural session was attended by WEF founder and Executive Chairman Professor Klaus Schwab, several ministers and senior officials and prominent Saudi and international speakers.

The forum is an extension of the support for development and innovation in Saudi Arabia by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense.

Al-Sawahah said the forum offers an opportunity to combine talent and technology to present organizations that stimulate innovation.

He highlighted the importance of meeting thinkers and actors, such as representatives of governments, non-governmental institutions, and business leaders, in supporting this initiative.

Schwab congratulated the Kingdom for inaugurating the 4th Industrial Revolution Center that aims to harness new technologies with the best principles of flexible governance, which need government, business and civil society to make technology a force for good and ensure that the society benefits from it.

KACST President Dr. Munir bin Mahmoud El-Desouki said: “Our country needs cooperation and coordination of efforts in the public, private and non-profit sectors and open channels of dialogue to raise awareness about the Fourth Industrial Revolution and identify potential risks.”

“The Kingdom has a solid economic base to build on, through recent reforms to the governance model and the creation of new entities, such as the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority, the Cybersecurity Authority, the Digital Government Authority, and the Research, Development, and Innovation Development Authority,” he added.

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Hong Kong Leader Says Concerns over Panama Ports Deal Warrant 'Attention'

FILE - A cargo ship sails next to the Panama Canal's Balboa port in Panama City, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)
FILE - A cargo ship sails next to the Panama Canal's Balboa port in Panama City, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)
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Hong Kong Leader Says Concerns over Panama Ports Deal Warrant 'Attention'

FILE - A cargo ship sails next to the Panama Canal's Balboa port in Panama City, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)
FILE - A cargo ship sails next to the Panama Canal's Balboa port in Panama City, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)

Hong Kong leader John Lee on Tuesday said criticism of city conglomerate CK Hutchison's sale of its Panama Canal ports deserved "serious attention", after Beijing authorities repeatedly slammed the deal.

The business empire of Hong Kong's richest man, Li Ka-shing, sold most of its port operations -- including those in the canal -- to a US-led consortium this month following pressure from US President Donald Trump.

But Beijing has upped pressure on the firm since, with two Chinese government offices managing Hong Kong affairs republishing newspaper articles last week blasting the transaction and questioning whether CK Hutchison sided with the United States over China, AFP reported.

"There have been extensive discussions in society about the issue and this reflects society's concern over the matter," Lee, the chief executive of the largely autonomous Chinese city, told reporters.

"These concerns deserve serious attention."

Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources, that senior Chinese leaders have ordered several government agencies -- including the State Administration for Market Regulation -- to scrutinize the deal.

This examination by Beijing does not necessarily result in follow-up action, the sources told Bloomberg, asking not to be identified to discuss private deliberations.

Shares of CK Hutchison in Hong Kong fell nearly four percent on Tuesday morning.

For months, Trump has complained that China controls shipping in the Panama Canal, which was built by the United States more than a century ago to link the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

The US president repeatedly threatened to "take back" the canal, which was handed over to Panama in 1999.

'Bullying tactics'

Before the sale, CK Hutchison's subsidiary in Panama had managed two of the five ports at the canal -- one on the Cristobal, Atlantic, side and the other on the Balboa, Pacific, side -- via a government concession since 1997.

CK Hutchison, one of Hong Kong's largest conglomerates, said the deal was unrelated to recent political news.

Lee on Tuesday urged foreign governments to "provide a fair and just environment" for Hong Kong enterprises, without calling out the United States by name.

"We oppose the abusive use of coercion, of bullying tactics in international economic and trade relations," he said.

Lee said any transaction must comply with legal and regulatory requirements, adding that Hong Kong would "handle it in accordance with the law and regulations".

The Hong Kong and Macao Work Office -- an office in Beijing overseeing Hong Kong affairs -- republished a newspaper article last Thursday asking CK Hutchison "which side it stands on".

Two days later, it ran another piece critical of the deal, which was later republished by the Liaison Office, the top Beijing authority based in Hong Kong.

AFP has contacted the conglomerate for comment.

Outspoken Hong Kong ex-leader CY Leung added to the chorus of criticism, saying "some Hong Kong businesspeople mistakenly believe that 'businesspeople have no homeland'".

"American businesspeople can and will do only things aligned with US interests... the same applies to China," Leung wrote on Facebook on Monday.