MUST-READS

• Jeeno Thitikul Cruises to 2025 PIF Saudi Ladies International Crown

  Jeeno Thitikul secured her fifth Ladies European Tour (LET) title after storming to a four-stroke victory at the 2025 PIF Saudi Ladies International. The Thai star, who is number four in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, began the day with a three-shot lead at Riyadh Golf Club. Thitikul rolled in a birdie on the first before adding further birdies on the fourth and seventh holes to put herself in a commanding position. Another birdie on the 10th was followed by a bogey on the next hole however, she soon added another birdie on 12 before a dropped shot on the 14th hole. A round of 69 (-3) on the final day to end the week with a score of 16-under-par was more than enough to ensure Thitikul began her 2025 season in the best way.

• GCC Dominates Global Energy Landscape with Record Oil Production

  GCC countries continue to assert their dominance in global energy markets, securing top rankings across key indicators such as crude oil production, reserves, and natural gas resources. According to the latest figures from the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf , the region remains the leading force in crude oil production and holds vast reserves of both crude oil and natural gas. The GCC nations, collectively producing approximately 17 million barrels per day of crude oil in 2023, account for an impressive 23.2% of the world’s total crude oil output. Despite facing a 6.8% reduction in production compared to 2022, the GCC still maintains its status as the world’s top producer. The drop in output reflects broader market dynamics, including fluctuating global demand and OPEC’s collective production targets.

• Private Financings Gain In Popularity Among GCC Issuers

  Over the past decade, GCC issuers mainly relied on banks, bonds, and sukuk to meet their funding needs. The total amount of private capital financings raised by GCC issuers between 2020 and 2024 increased significantly to $54.8 billion, from $10.4 billion between 2015 and 2019, and is set to rise further. S&P Global Ratings expects private capital financings in GCC countries will gain in importance over the next few years, particularly considering higher interest from private capital providers in the region. The number of transactions that were financed with private capital peaked at $20.4 billion in 2023 and decreased to $14.5 billion in 2024, compared with $1.3 billion in 2015

• Israel receives shipment of heavy bombs cleared by Trump
  Israel has received a shipment of heavy MK-84 bombs from the United States, after U.S. President Donald Trump lifted a block imposed on the export of the munitions by the administration of predecessor Joe Biden, the defence ministry said on Sunday. Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Trump said he lifted a Biden-era block on the export of the bombs to Israel despite a ceasefire agreement being in place because he believed in "peace through strength." "They contracted for the weapons a long time ago with the Biden administration, and then Biden wouldn't deliver the weapons. But I look at it differently. I say, 'peace through strength,'" Trump told reporters after returning to West Palm Beach, Florida, after a short trip to Daytona Beach. "They were sitting there. Nobody knew what to do with them. They bought them."

• Netanyahu says Israel and US are determined to thwart Iran
  Israel and the United States are determined to thwart Iran's nuclear ambitions and its influence in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday after meeting U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Speaking after meeting Rubio in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said they discussed a number of issues, "none more important than Iran". "Israel and America stand shoulder to shoulder in countering the threat of Iran," he said. "We agreed that the ayatollahs must not have nuclear weapons and also agreed that Iran's aggression in the region must be rolled back."

• Rubio arrives in Saudi Arabia before Russia talks to end Ukraine war
  Russia said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will hold talks with top U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on Tuesday that will focus on ending the war in Ukraine and restoring "the whole complex" of Russia-U.S. ties. Rubio arrived in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Monday on a previously planned trip. U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who are set to arrive later on Monday, will be joining him at the talks with the Russians. The talks will be among the first high-level, in-person discussions in years between Russian and U.S. officials and are meant to precede a meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, a foreign policy advisor to President Vladimir Putin, would fly to the Saudi capital Riyadh on Monday. Riyadh, which is also involved in talks with Washington over the future of the Gaza Strip, has played a role in early contacts between the Trump administration, which took office on January 20, and Moscow, helping to secure a prisoner swap last week.

• Zelenskyy Arrives In Middle East, But Kyiv Says Peace Talks Not On Agenda

  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in the Middle East as the United States prepared to hold talks in Saudi Arabia with Russia on how to end Moscow’s war with Ukraine, but Zelenskyy said Kyiv was not invited and that he had no plans to participate in those discussions. Zelenskyy, who landed in the United Arab Emirates late on February 16, said he was on a mission to boost economic ties in the region and that he would later travel to neighboring Saudi Arabia, also to discuss business matters.

• Top US diplomat arrives in Israel on first trip to Middle East
  US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Israel late Saturday on his first trip to the Middle East, Anadolu reports. He was welcomed at the Ben Gurion International Airport by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, who shared a photo on his X account. The US diplomat will hold meetings on Sunday with top Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Following his visit to Israel, Rubio will travel to Saudi Arabia and the UAE to meet senior officials to discuss regional cooperation, stability and peace.

• Saudi Arabia Expands Absher Platform with New Digital Identity Services for Citizens and Expatriates

  Saudi Arabia has expanded its Absher digital platform with new services that streamline government procedures for citizens and expatriates. The platform recently achieved a milestone of 28 million digital identities in December 2024. Maj. Gen. Saleh Al Murabba, Chief of the Saudi Directorate of Passports, announced new features including digital identity verification for expatriates, photo upload capabilities for dependent passports, and enhanced national ID card management services. Expatriate residents can now display digital identification details to authorities, update passport information, and submit photos for passport-related procedures through the platform.

• Saudi Arabia awards almost $2bn of contracts in January

  Saudi government entities awarded more than SAR6.5 billion ($1.7 billion) of contracts in January, led by housing, infrastructure and industry. More than half the value of the contracts issued last month – SAR3.7 billion – was allocated towards construction, with the remainder going on water , energy and industry projects, the Saudi Contractors’ Authority (SCA) said last week in its latest Muqawil (contractor) bulletin. There were 15 projects in all, and the capital Riyadh took the lion’s share by value at SAR4.8 billion. This month, the SCA is expecting the number of awarded contracts to rise to 25, from entities including Saudi Electricity Company, the National Housing Company and the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

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