Cabinet reaffirms Saudization target RIYADH – Monday's Cabinet meeting chaired by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, condemned the “clear escalation of Israel's settlement policy”, which it described as constituting a “major obstacle for the resumption of peace talks”, but praised the “European position highlighting the illegality of Israeli settlements.” The King briefed the session on recent communications and consultations to unify Arab ranks and spoke of the “unanimous position of all brothers in the region” on regional issues and work to bring lasting peace to the Middle East. King Abdullah appealed to all sides to use current regional and international movements to revive peace talks and work toward the creation of an independent Palestinian state. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques also spoke of the telephone call he received from Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Beshir, and briefed the Cabinet on his meetings with the Omani Foreign Minister Yousif Bin Alawi, the German vice chancellor and the German foreign minister, and the Chinese minister of foreign affairs. Other Cabinet business concluded with its approval for the change in name of the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation to the Saudi Commission for Wildlife, while the minister of Education was authorized to discuss with Tajikistan a draft Memorandum of Understanding on scientific and educational cooperation between the two countries. The Cabinet also approved an extension to Article 9 of Cabinet Resolution No. 23, effective from 17/1/1430, which sets the rate of Saudization at five percent for another two years.
