JEDDAH — Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman chaired the virtual session of the Council of Ministers held on Tuesday.

In his address, the King thanked the people of the Kingdom for their heartfelt well wishes and prayers for his speedy recovery when he suffered from lung infection last week. He also expressed gratitude to the leaders of friendly nations who sent messages wishing him good health and well-being. King Salman, in turn, prayed to God to bestow good health and happiness to all.

Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and the Cabinet members expressed gratitude to God for the recovery of the King. They offered prayers for the King’s continued health and well-being so that he can lead the Kingdom marching toward further growth and prosperity.

The Cabinet then reviewed the content of the message that the King received from the Senegalese president, as well as phone calls between the Crown Prince and French president and Japanese prime minister, all of which focused on strengthening relations and exploring the potential for further collaboration in various sectors.

In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency following the session, Minister of State, Cabinet Member for Shoura Council Affairs and Acting Minister of Media Dr. Issam bin Saad bin Saeed said that the Cabinet discussed several reports on developments and events on the Arab and regional arenas. The Cabinet reiterated its strong condemnation of the ongoing blatant violations of all international resolutions and laws by Israeli occupation forces. It stressed the need for the international community to intervene to alleviate the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe facing the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the occupied territories.

The Cabinet also reviewed the latest developments regarding cooperation between the Kingdom and multilateral organizations.

He stated that Saudi Arabia’s unanimous election to the International Transport Forum and winning the bid to host the UNCTAD Global Supply Chain Forum in 2026 are testimony to the Kingdom’s global leadership and recognition of its ambitious initiatives and projects to develop these vital sectors.

The Cabinet praised the success of the Future Aviation Forum, which was held in Riyadh and saw wide international participation, the signing of over 100 agreements and memoranda of understanding, and the announcement of investments worth tens of billions of riyals, which will contribute to making significant strides in the aviation sector and further enhancing the Kingdom’s position in the global and regional air transport industry.

Saeed said that the Cabinet hailed the Kingdom for setting new global records in reducing the cost of electricity production from wind energy, and supporting its efforts to diversify energy sources, enhance its global position in exporting renewable and sustainable energy, increase the use of clean energy, reduce carbon emissions, and preserve the environment, in line with various local and international initiatives.

The Cabinet issued several decisions and these included approval of a headquarters agreement between the government of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition Center. The Cabinet authorized minister of culture or his deputy to discuss and sign draft memoranda of understanding for cooperation in the cultural field with the Ministry of Education and Culture of Uruguay and the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage of Chile. It approved the accession of Saudi Arabia, through the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, to the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate initiative.

The Council endorsed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation by the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources and the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in the field of geology and mineral resources and another draft MoU for cooperation in the economic field between the Saudi Ministry of Economy and Planning and its counterparts in other countries, and authorizing the minister of economy and planning or his deputy to discuss and sign draft MoU regarding cooperation in the economic field with counterparts in other countries.

The Cabinet authorized minister of education or his deputy to discuss and sign with the American side a draft memorandum of cooperation in the field of higher education and scientific research. It authorized chairman of the board of directors of the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) or his deputy to discuss and sign with the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) in Great Britain and Northern Ireland a draft MoU for cooperation in the field of veterinary drug regulation.

The Cabinet approved a MoU between the Saudi Control and Anti-Corruption Authority and Azerbaijan Prosecutor General's Office to prevent and combat corruption, and another MoU between the Saudi Royal Institute of Traditional Arts and the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy, to cooperate in the field of traditional arts.

The Council approved the Unified Plant Genetic Resources Management System for Food and Agriculture, the General Framework for the Gulf Tourism Strategy, and the Charter for the Conservation and Development of Architectural Heritage in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries adopted by the 43rd session of the GCC Supreme Council; and the Public Funds Protection Law for the GCC countries, adopted by the 154th session of the GCC Ministerial Council as a guiding document for a period of two years.

The Cabinet endorsed transforming the Modern Institute of the Capital in Riyadh into a non-profit organization owned by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, and approved, in principle, the establishment of a foundation named Green Riyadh Foundation.

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