The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Monday afternoon. At the outset of the session, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Cabinet on his consultations and results of talks with President Xi Jinping of the People's Republic of China, the Prime Minister of Islamic Republic of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif, the Secretary of State of the United States of America John Kerry, and President of the Parliamentary Assembly delegation of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Lord Jopling. The Cabinet appreciated the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' confirmation during his talks with the President of the People's Republic of China of the seeking of the two countries for stability and enhancement of peace and security in the region and the world; his emphasis that the challenges facing the world, particularly terrorism, necessitate that the international community stands together in fighting it; the Kingdom's appreciation for China's efforts in this regard; and the necessity that the international community reaffirms the principles established by the Charter of the United Nations, particularly non-interference in States' internal affairs and respect for their sovereignty so that security and peace prevail between nations. The Cabinet highlighted the outcomes of the Chinese President's visit to the Kingdom in enhancing cooperation and friendship between the two countries which have witnessed a steady growth over the past twenty five years including the signing of the governments of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and China 14 agreements and memorandums of understanding to contribute to enhancing, increasing and deepening close cooperation in political, economic, commercial, cultural, humanitarian, military, security, and energy fields at regional and international levels in an embodiment to upgrade Saudi-Chinese relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. The Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Adel bin Zaid Altoraifi said in a statement to Saudi Press Agency following the session that the Cabinet considered the inauguration of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of the project of Company of Yanbu Aramco Sinopec for Refining "YASREF'' in Riyadh and opening King Abdullah Center for Petroleum Studies and Research in Riyadh as an extension of the support and attention being provided by the leading and pioneering leadership for all matters in the Kingdom's interest, various institutions and citizens, and as a result of clear governmental policies and creative, educated and productive potentialities of sincere citizens working in the giant installations and making the optimal use of various resources of the homeland. The Cabinet commended the outcomes of the visit of the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif in enhancing close brotherly relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The Cabinet commended the statement issued by the Extraordinary Meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Member States of Organization of Islamic Cooperation in response to the call of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which condemned the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad, and described them as a clear violation of Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961 and Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963, and that these attacks are contrary to the Charters of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the United Nations. The Minister of Culture and Information said that the Cabinet hailed the statement issued by the Egyptian-Saudi Coordination Council in its fourth meeting in Cairo, its completion of the discussion of the topics set on its agenda and confirmation of the importance of completing the rest of the tasks. The Council of Ministers also expressed its strong condemnation and denunciation of the two terrorist attacks against both a university in northwest Pakistan and the center of Afghan capital, Kabul, which resulted in scores of deaths and injuries, and its assertion that these criminal acts are contrary to the principles of Islam and its teachings as well as the humanitarian values and principles. The Cabinet was briefed on reports on the situations and the latest developments on Arab, regional and international arenas, particularly the Palestinian cause, the Syrian file and the importance of implementing the decisions of Geneva Conference 1, and what was agreed upon in Vienna and New York meetings, as well as the latest developments in Yemen. It was also briefed on a number of works and the results of conferences and symposia that were held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the past week. Dr. Adel bin Zaid Altoraifi said that the Cabinet reviewed the topics on its agenda, including topics which were co-shared in their study by the Shura Council, and the Cabinet was briefed on what has been achieved by the Cabinet's General Committee and the Cabinet's Experts Bureau in this regard, and concluded the following: First: The Cabinet approved the controls of the segmentation of agricultural lands. Second: The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Defense - or his deputy - to discuss with the Malaysian side a draft memorandum of understanding between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of Malaysia on scientific, technical and industrial cooperation in the field of national defense, and sign it. Third: The Cabinet approved a framework agreement between the Ministry of Agriculture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Water Resources and Electricity in the Republic of Sudan regarding the partnership in agricultural investment in (Upper Atbara Agricultural Project), signed in Riyadh on 01/21/1437 AH. Fourth: The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Foreign Affairs - or his deputy - to discuss with the Indonesian side a draft memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Republic of Indonesia in the areas of documentation and archives, sign it, and submit the final version for further regular procedures. Fifth: After reviewing the report of the Minister of Transport and consideration of the Shura Council's resolution No. (11/4) dated 03/11/1437 AH, the Cabinet approved an agreement of cooperation between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Korea in the field of maritime transport, signed in Riyadh on 05/12/1436 H. A royal decree has been prepared in this regard. Sixth: The Cabinet authorized the President of the National Anti-Corruption Commission - or his deputy - to discuss and sign with the Malaysian side a draft memorandum of understanding in the field of preventing and combating corruption between the National Anti-Corruption Commission and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. Seventh: The Cabinet approved a number of appointments as follows: 1- Abdulrahman bin Abdullah bin Mubarak Al-Masoud appointed to the post of Undersecretary of the Ministry for Regiment Affairs (Rank 15) at the Ministry of Interior. 2- Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Abdulmohsen Al-Sowayed transferred from the post of Undersecretary of Jazan Region Principality (Rank 15) to the post of Director General of Veterans (Rank 15) at the Ministry of the Interior. 3- Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Hamad Al-Jarba appointed to the post of Legal Expert/A (Rank 15) at the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers. 4- Ahmad bin Abdullah bin Saud bin Muslim appointed to the post of Advisor for Security Affairs (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Interior. 5- Bandar bin Rashid bin Mohammed Al Sulaiman appointed to the post of Legal Advisor (Rank 14) at the Supreme Court. 6- Eng. Mohammed bin Suleiman bin Saleh Al-Suwail appointed to the post of Director General of the Ministry's Branch in Riyadh Region (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Housing. The Cabinet also reviewed the annual reports of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance; and the Ministry of Justice; and the Saudi Geological Survey, for a number of previous fiscal years.
