JEDDAH: The director of the Saudi Foreign Ministry’s branch in the Western Region Muhammad Al-Tayyib has commended the Russians for supporting the Goldstone Report on the Israeli military offensive in Gaza last winter, which was approved by UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Friday.
Al-Tayyib made his observation at the opening of a forum the Saudi-Russian Business Council, held at the headquarters of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) on Sunday.
“We people in Saudi Arabia and the Arab World in general appreciate the Russian stance with regard to the rights of Arabs and its support for the Palestinian struggle in regaining their legitimate rights and to create an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital,” said Al-Tayyib.
“I should, on this occasion, laud the vote by Russia in UNHRC supporting the report that condemns Israel for committing crimes in its latest war in the Gaza Strip.”
Emphasizing the growing economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Russia, Al-Tayyib said businessmen of both countries have ample opportunities to initiate more joint ventures.
Dignitaries including the Russian Federation’s Ambassador and Extraordinary Commissioner in Saudi Arabia Victor Kodravetsev, Deputy Director of Investment Management and Cooperation Tatania Gavliva, Permanent Representative of Russian Federation in the Muslim world Kamil Ishakov and other members of the Russian business delegation attended the function.
The delegation members in their speeches stressed the need to step up cooperation between the two countries in all areas.
More than 100 Russian businessmen and industrialists demanded their Saudi counterparts to cooperate in opening joint markets and setting up huge projects.
They also expressed their readiness to bring Russian economic products and new opportunities to Jeddah. Several agreements and protocols of cooperation between businessmen of both countries were also signed in the forum.
They also discussed possible ventures in areas such as energy, metal products, petrochemical industries, environment protection and nanotechnology, in addition to the banking, investment, agriculture and water management sectors.
The balance of trade between the two countries stood at SR3.89 billion last year according to figures supplied by the JCCI. While petrochemicals were the major item of Saudi export to Russia, barley products, iron and steel, electrical appliances also topped the list of Russian products imported to the Kingdom.
