The advisor to the Saudi royal court, Ambassador Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Kattan, is finalizing the list of countries where the kingdom is set to open a diplomatic representation in 2024.
Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Kattan © Mena Today
The advisor to the Saudi royal court, Ambassador Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Kattan, is finalizing the list of countries where the kingdom is set to open a diplomatic representation in 2024.
The Africa-Saudi Arabia summit, held on November 10 in Riyadh, confirmed the kingdom's desire to increase its presence to 40 diplomatic missions on the continent, up from the current 27.
According to Africa Intelligence, a significant portion of these future openings will occur in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) zone, a region underrepresented in the Saudi diplomatic network, which has been more focused on West Africa, the Maghreb, and the Horn.
While some new locations are already known – for example, Kattan announced in May during a visit to Eswatini that Mbabane would soon have a Saudi ambassador – others will be announced rapidly.
Zimbabwe and Malawi are said to be the first destinations to be approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is already searching for buildings or land to establish missions in Harare and Lilongwe.
Nearly two years after the opening of its embassy in Riyadh, Angola is also hopeful that Saudi Arabia will soon establish representation in Luanda.
The Angolan ambassador to Saudi Arabia, the experienced former minister Frederico Cardoso, was pleased at the November 10 summit with the validation of around $110 million for the Catumbela industrial project.
This project had already received approval during Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Kattan's visit to Luanda in August.
Saudi Arabia has launched an air accident probe following last week's cockpit stabbing on a flydubai jet, as experts examine any fallout for aviation safety alongside a separate UAE-led criminal investigation, three people close to the matter said.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that "strong and model NATO ally" Greece and the United States are launching new counterterrorism information sharing between their law enforcement agencies.
Houthis attacked the international airport in the southern Yemeni town of Aden with ballistic missiles and explosive-laden drones early on Wednesday, Yemen's Transport Ministry said, as fighting intensified across several fronts between the Iran-aligned group and Saudi-backed government forces.
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