GCC chief slams Khamenei over interference in Bahrain
Source: Saudi Gazette (Read full story)
Abdullatif Al-Zayani, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), has condemned remarks by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Bahrain and its people during a recent conference in Iran. Al-Zayani dismissed the statements Khamenei made at the “Muslim Scholars and Islamic Awakening” held in Iran recently as “reprehensible fallacies” and a “blatant interference” in the internal affairs of Bahrain. He said the statements were in breach of the principles of the religion of Islam and good neighborliness, as well as the international law.
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Arab League flags shift in peace initiative terms
Source: Gulf Times (Read full story)
Since taking office on February 1, Kerry has plunged into the maelstrom of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the hope of breaking the impasse and seeing a resumption of some form of talks. He has suggested the Arab Peace Initiative could provide a framework for a future deal. For Israel, the principle of swapping land is a way to hold on to densely populated Jewish settlement blocs built on occupied Palestinian land. Although the Palestinians accept the idea of “minor and mutually agreed land swaps” they have rejected outright any idea of letting Israel hold on to large swathes of settlements. Until now, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has categorically rejected outright any return to what he has said would be the “indefensible” lines before June 4, 1967.
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The Enduring Legacy of Oil – Ali I. Al-Naimi
Source: SUSRIS (Read full story)
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali I. Al-Naimi presented his views on developments in the global energy market at the Center for Strategic and International Studies today. Saudi Arabia has almost one-fifth of the world’s proven oil reserves, and it is the largest producer and exporter of total petroleum liquids in the world, according to the Energy Information Agency. It was the world’s largest producer and exporter of total petroleum liquids in 2012, the world’s largest holder of crude reserves, and the world’s second largest crude oil producer behind Russia. The EIA provides a useful analysis of Saudi Arabia’s energy profile in their Country Analysis Brief, including: Saudi Arabia’s oil and natural gas operations are dominated by Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company in terms of proven oil reserves and production.
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FNC passes federal audit but questions remain
Source: The National (Read full story)
The Federal National Council has passed the 2011 end-of-year audit report, but members complained that it again breached rules despite new regulations put in place. The report highlighted numerous problems in several federal departments. The majority of these were the same as in the 2010 report. They included emirate-level traffic authorities – except Abu Dhabi – not passing on revenue from fines to the federal government, and Umm Al Quwain’s federal court continuing to send court fees to the local government. Last year, the council refused to pass the accounts in protest over breaches of the rules. It later approved it after the Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Obaid Al Tayer, gave assurances that a new zero-based-budget system would be put in place
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Oman Sovereign Wealth Fund Focuses on Local Deals After Protests
Source: Bloomberg (Read full story)
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Sultan Qaboos Bin Said has been taking measures to increase pay, create jobs and improve political representation after his forces repressed demonstrations that broke out mostly in the northern coastal city of Sohar. Those followed uprisings against poverty and dictatorships that shook Arab countries in 2011 and that led to regime change in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen. Discontent in Oman was exacerbated by the nation’s proximity to richer oil-producing neighbors like the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. With a population of 2.7 million Omanis and 600,000 expatriates, it produces just about 850,000 barrels of oil a day. The U.A.E., with a population of 5.5 million of which 20 percent are nationals, produces 2.7 million barrels a day.
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