RIYADH: UK Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Neil Crompton and Pakistani Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Lt. Gen. Bilal Akbar met with the respective parliamentary friendship committees of the Shoura Council to discuss ways of enhancing bilateral cooperation, especially in parliamentary relations. Dr. Ghazi bin Faisal bin Zagr, chairman of the Saudi-British Parliamentary Friendship Committee, an affiliate of the Shoura Council, held a meeting with the UK ambassador in the presence of members of the committee, during which he stressed the importance of supporting the bilateral relations between the two friendly countries. He highlighted Saudi Arabia’s role in combating terrorism as well as its efforts to spread tolerance and encourage dialogue among different religions and cultures.
TEHRAN: An Iranian presidential candidate said on Wednesday he would be willing to meet US President Joe Biden if he wins his country’s election next week, though “America needs to send better and stronger signals” to the Islamic Republic.
Speaking to The Associated Press, former Iranian Central Bank chief Abdolnasser Hemmati stressed that an American return to Iran’s tattered nuclear deal was key to any possible relationship amid the wider tensions in the Mideast.
“I think we haven’t seen anything serious from Mr. Biden’s side yet,” Hemmati said. “They first need to go back to the (nuclear deal) that they withdrew from. If we see the process and more confidence is built, then we can talk about that.”
Kingdom’s first home-built device unveiled on Wednesday
The PB 560 ventilator is based on designs shared last year by Medtronic
Updated 09 June 2021
June 09, 2021 22:58
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia has launched the first ventilator manufactured in the Kingdom in a boost to hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
The Puritan Bennett (PB) 560 portable ventilator was built by Riyadh-based Rowad Technology. The firm aims to make about 6,000 of the devices a year.
The original PB 560 was designed and built by American-Irish medical technology company Medtronic.
As the pandemic escalated in March 2020 there was a global shortage of ventilators and Medtronic took the unusual step of sharing the design specifications and software code for the device to enable others companies around the world to manufacture their own versions.
BEIRUT: In a speech seen as an act of defiance against the Lebanese state and the US, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday insisted that Lebanon should be “negotiating with Iran to buy gasoline and diesel with the Lebanese currency if Lebanon’s shortages persist.”
Seemingly unconcerned about the possibility that this might result in international sanctions being imposed on Lebanon, he said, during a televised speech: “Shipments of fuel will arrive at Beirut’s port, and let the state prevent their access to Lebanon.”
Nasrallah’s speech came hours after reports that the Iraqi government has agreed to double a previous promise to supply Lebanon with oil, from 500,000 to 1 million tons. His comments provoked varying reactions among the Lebanese public. Some were surprised and some rejected the idea of buying oil from Iran, given the risk of sanctions. Washington still has sanctions in place on Iran and has designated the military and political wings of Hezbollah