Riyadh Seeks to Boost Food Security with Thai Partnerships

The Saudi delegation meets with Thai officials in Bangkok. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi delegation meets with Thai officials in Bangkok. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT

Riyadh Seeks to Boost Food Security with Thai Partnerships

The Saudi delegation meets with Thai officials in Bangkok. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi delegation meets with Thai officials in Bangkok. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

A Thai official revealed his country’s efforts to build bilateral partnerships with Saudi Arabia to enhance food security, stressing that his country would study and address challenges facing Saudi investors in exporting to Thailand.

He made his remarks during a meeting in Bangkok on Tuesday that brought together Thailand’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Cooperative Societies and a delegation from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Riyadh.

The Thai official underlined the importance of the meeting, noting that the Saudi delegation, which boasted over 100 businessmen, was the first and largest to visit Thailand in 32 years.

Chairman of the Agriculture and Water Committee in the Riyadh Chamber Dr. Ibrahim Al-Turki said the Kingdom was interested in strengthening its capabilities and developing its investment and trade relations with countries across the globe to promote food security. He noted that Thailand’s huge agricultural wealth would have a major role in forging more partnerships with Saudi Arabia.

He added that Thailand’s advanced technologies in agriculture were a source of confidence and a great opportunity for the Saudis to build multiple partnerships in this particular field.

Trade and economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Thailand were recently revived after being suspended for three decades.

The Saudi-Thai Investment Forum was launched in May in the Saudi capital, where a number of MoUs were signed between the Ministry of Investment and an official Thai delegation.

The delegation of the Riyadh Chamber discussed in Thailand opportunities for cooperation in mining technologies, in addition to strengthening partnership in the field of research and industrial consultancy.



IMF, Ukraine Reach Deal That Would Give It Access to Some $1.1 Bln 

People walk on a pedestrian bridge during the sunset in city center of Kyiv, Ukraine, September 9, 2024. (AP)
People walk on a pedestrian bridge during the sunset in city center of Kyiv, Ukraine, September 9, 2024. (AP)
TT

IMF, Ukraine Reach Deal That Would Give It Access to Some $1.1 Bln 

People walk on a pedestrian bridge during the sunset in city center of Kyiv, Ukraine, September 9, 2024. (AP)
People walk on a pedestrian bridge during the sunset in city center of Kyiv, Ukraine, September 9, 2024. (AP)

The International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday it had reached a preliminary agreement with Ukraine that would give the war-torn country access to about $1.1 billion in financial assistance.

The agreement follows what Kyiv said on Tuesday were "difficult" talks and is subject to approval by the fund's executive board, which the IMF said in a statement is expected to happen in "coming weeks".

The IMF is a key international lender to Kyiv and its four-year $15.6 billion program is a crucial part of a bigger global economic support package to Ukraine as it gears up for a third winter trying to fend off Russia's full-scale invasion.

"Russia's war in Ukraine continues to have a devastating impact on the country and its people," Gavin Gray, who led the IMF's monitoring mission to Kyiv for the fifth review of the lending program, said in a statement.

"Skillful policymaking, the adaptability of households and firms, and robust external financing has helped support macroeconomic and financial stability."

The IMF, however, said that the risks to Ukraine "remain exceptionally high" with an economic slowdown expected due to the impact of the war on labor market and Russia's continued attacks on the energy infrastructure, among other factors.

Kyiv is spending about 60% of its total budget to fund its army and relies heavily on financial support from its Western partners to pay pensions and wages to public sector employees and finance social and humanitarian spending.

Ukraine has received about $98 billion in financial aid from its Western partners since the start of the war, finance ministry data showed.

The IMF urged the Kyiv government, which President Volodymyr Zelenskiy reshuffled last week, to "respect financing constraints and debt sustainability objectives" in the 2025 budget and look for ways to increase domestic revenues.

The government has said previously it plans to raise taxes and has already implemented other fiscal measures, including increasing import and excise duties.

Ukraine also won an agreement from bondholders to restructure and write down its debt.