Presidents of Mauritania, Algeria Expected in Riyadh on Official Visits

Gulf

February 26th, 6:38am

Riyadh – Fatehelrahman Yousif and Asma al-Ghabri

A general view of Riyadh. (SPA)

The presidents of Mauritania and Algeria are expected to visit Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and Thursday respectively on their first trip to the Kingdom since their election. Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani will kick off his official visit on Wednesday with meetings with the Saudi leadership. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, had paid a visit to Mauritania in December 2018, bolstering relations and renewing support for the African country’s development efforts. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is set to arrive in Riyadh on Thursday in his first oversees trip since his election last year. Crown Prince Mohammed had paid a visit to Algeria in December 2018. Saudi Arabia is one of the major investors in the North African country. Its overall investments are estimated at 3 billion dollars and the figure is expected to exceed 10 billion in the next ten years. Saudi Arabia and Algeria have also signed 23 economic agreements between 2002 and 2018. The trade exchange between them reaches half a billion dollars. Last year, Algiers hosted the 12th Algerian-Saudi business council meeting. Officials agreed on forming a higher council aimed at boosting cooperation between their countries.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2150171/presidents-mauritania-algeria-expected-riyadh-official-visits