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Saudi Crown Prince Succeeds in Mediating Release of Foreign Prisoners

Freed foreign prisoners arrive in Saudi Arabia in preparation for their transfer to their countries (SPA)
Freed foreign prisoners arrive in Saudi Arabia in preparation for their transfer to their countries (SPA)
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Saudi Crown Prince Succeeds in Mediating Release of Foreign Prisoners

Freed foreign prisoners arrive in Saudi Arabia in preparation for their transfer to their countries (SPA)
Freed foreign prisoners arrive in Saudi Arabia in preparation for their transfer to their countries (SPA)

Mediation sessions by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud succeeded on Wednesday in arranging the freeing of 10 prisoners of different nationalities as part of a prisoner release between Moscow and Kyiv.

Britain and Sweden, both of which have citizens that were released under Saudi mediation, were quick to welcome the Kingdom’s efforts.

“Based on the priority given by Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister, and in continuation of his commitment to the humanitarian initiatives towards the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, and resulting from his continued engagement with the relevant countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces the success of his mediation efforts that led to the release of ten prisoners of war (POWs) – who are Moroccan, US, UK, Swedish and Croatian nationals,” said a statement released by the Saudi Foreign Ministry.

They “are being released as part of an exchange of POWs between Russia and Ukraine.”

“Relevant Saudi authorities received and transferred them from Russia to the Kingdom and are facilitating procedures for their safe return to their respective countries,” it added.

The Ministry expressed the gratitude of the Saudi government to Russia and Ukraine “for their response to the efforts made by the Crown Prince for the release of the POWs.”

British Prime Minister Liz Truss welcomed the release and transfer to Riyadh of five UK prisoners.

“Hugely welcome news that five British nationals held by Russian-backed proxies in eastern Ukraine are being safely returned, ending months of uncertainty and suffering for them and their families,” tweeted Truss.

She thanked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Saudi Arabia for helping free the detainees.

Moreover, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde also said that a Swedish citizen, held in Donetsk, “has now been freed and is well.”

She, too, thanked Ukraine and Saudi Arabia.

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Taiwan’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia: 260,000 Pagers Exported in Two Years

Taiwan’s representative to Saudi Arabia Samee Chang. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Taiwan’s representative to Saudi Arabia Samee Chang. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Taiwan’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia: 260,000 Pagers Exported in Two Years

Taiwan’s representative to Saudi Arabia Samee Chang. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Taiwan’s representative to Saudi Arabia Samee Chang. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Taiwan is investigating who is responsible for modifying the pagers that were turned into explosives in the hands of the Lebanese people, including members of Hezbollah.

Taiwan’s representative to Saudi Arabia Samee Chang told Asharq Al-Awsat that 260,000 pagers were exported from his country between 2022 and 2024, and 16 percent of them were sent to the United States and Europe.

He expressed his regret that the pagers were planted with explosives that were used in the attack in Lebanon last month, clarifying that the devices were not directly exported from Taiwan to Lebanon.

He explained that the components of the device are made of material that is not liable to explode.

Apollo Gold, the Taiwanese company that exported the pagers between 2022 and 2024, has never received any complaints that its devices have caused harm or exploded.

The attack in Lebanon has raised several questions and they are being probed by authorities in Taiwan, he went on to say.

One thing is for certain, the devices were not harmful in the shape they were exported from the country, stressed Chang.

Asked about whether the attack may harm Taiwan’s economy, he replied that his country’s industry sector has a strong reputation that will be difficult to undermine given the trust it has from clients.

The size of the sector and Taiwan’s investments cannot be measured by a small number of pagers, as they only make up a mere fraction in the country’s trade relations with countries all over the world, he stressed.

Separately, Chang revealed that Taiwan was considering cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the chip industry, saying he was optimistic over the broad potential for cooperation in the technology sector.

There are no limits to the cooperation between them, he added.

Taiwan constantly wants to maintain the relations and discuss opportunities for joint investments, he stated.

Taiwan was among the first countries to leap to cooperate with Saudi Arabia in all fields to help the Kingdom achieve its Vision 2030 that is spearheaded by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Chang said.