Middle East

Qatar Airways makes historic journey from London to Gatwick to Doha --- New Gas to Liquids fuel offers diversity of supply and better local air quality to busy airports.

12/10/2009 -- A Qatar Airways aircraft this evening completed the world’s first commercial passenger flight powered by a fuel made from natural gas.

The historic journey from London Gatwick to Doha took over six hours and was operated with an Airbus A340-600 aircraft using Rolls-Royce Trent 556 engines.

Shell developed and produced the 50-50 blend of synthetic Gas to Liquids (GTL) kerosene and conventional oil-based kerosene fuel. The State of Qatar is set to become the world’s leading producer of GTL kerosene when it is put into commercial production from 2012.    » read more »

October 7, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Arlen Specter and Bob Casey applauded Senate passage of the concurrent resolution encouraging the Government of Iran to grant consular access by the Government of Switzerland to the three American citizens that have been held in Iran since July 31, 2009 when they were detained after reportedly crossing into Iranian territory while hiking in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The resolution also encourages the Government of Iran to allow the three young people to communicate by telephone with their families in the United States.    » read more »

10/01/2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) authored the following op-ed in today’s Financial Times titled “Time for Diplomacy to End the Stand-off With Iran.”

The full text of the op-ed is below:

Time for diplomacy to end the stand-off with Iran
By John Kerry
October 1, 2009

Today the Obama administration begins the most important American diplomatic engagement with Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The public revelation of the Qom enrichment facility and Iran’s provocative ballistic missile test on Monday demonstrate what is at stake. Iran has increased its low-enriched uranium 20-fold since 2007, enough to produce, eventually, at least one nuclear weapon after further enrichment.    » read more »

Statement by AFL-CIO President John Sweeney on the current crisis in iran

June 23, 2009 -- The AFL-CIO, representing over 11 million working women and men in the United States, expresses its deep concern over the immediate situation in Iran, following the contested election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Several people have been killed and many more wounded and injured by Iranian government forces attempting to repress massive demonstrations demanding either an annulment of the elections or a vote recount.    » read more »

June 22 2009 -- Riyadh -- Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) today announced that Morgan Stanley Saudi Arabia (MSSA) has launched equity trading on the KSA stock exchange, Tadawul. This new capability enables the Firm and its clients to trade cash equities and delivers the Firm's global market expertise to Saudi as well as GCC investors. The launch also enables MSSA to service international clients via swap contracts.

The new equity trading capability follows on the Firm's recent initiation of economic and equity strategy research coverage for Saudi Arabia.    » read more »

June 20, 2009 -- "The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching. We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost. We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people. The universal rights to assembly and free speech must be respected, and the United States stands with all who seek to exercise those rights.

As I said in Cairo, suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away. The Iranian people will ultimately judge the actions of their own government. If the Iranian government seeks the respect of the international community, it must respect the dignity of its own people and govern through consent, not coercion.    » read more »

The State Of Qatar Launches “Qatar Exchange” As It Signs Today Formal Terms Of Strategic Partnership With NYSE Euronext

Doha / New York / Paris, 19 June 2009 – Qatar Holding (“QH”), the strategic and direct investment arm of Qatar Investment Authority (“QIA”), and NYSE Euronext (NYX) today announced the signing of binding agreements to form a major strategic partnership which will establish Qatar Exchange (successor to the current Doha Securities Market (“DSM”)) as a world-class international exchange, and provide NYSE Euronext with a valuable presence in the Middle East.

The successful closing of negotiations follows a preliminary announcement on 24 June 2008 that Qatar had selected NYSE Euronext as a partner.    » read more »

June 19, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joseph I. Lieberman (ID-Conn.) introduced and the Senate passed a resolution today regarding the situation in Iran. A parallel resolution was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Howard Berman (D-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), where it was passed 405-1 earlier today. Senators McCain and Lieberman issued the following statement:

"The time has come for the United States Congress to speak out unequivocally in support of the fundamental right of the Iranian people to determine their future for themselves in freedom," said Senators McCain and Lieberman.    » read more »

Senate Unanimously Passes Kaufman Resolution Supporting a Free Press and Free Speech in Iran

June 19, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC - Today, the Senate passed a resolution introduced by Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE) and co-sponsored by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) that reinforces the universal values of freedom of speech and freedom of the press, and supports the Iranian people as they take steps to peacefully express their voices, opinions, and aspirations in the aftermath of the June 12th election.

The resolution also condemns censorship and intimidation of the press in Iran, and pledges support to the Iranian people seeking access to news and other forms of information.    » read more »

Jun. 18, 2009 -- Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Company (SATORP) finalized the awarding plan for Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracts that constitute the thirteen different process packages of their Jubail joint venture refinery, following a meeting of the SATORP Board of Directors. The awarding of these contracts marks an important step in the execution of this 400,000 barrel per day world-class, full-conversion refinery in Jubail, Saudi Arabia, which plans to be fully operational by the second half of 2013.    » read more »

17 June 2009 -- Demonstrations against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed election victory have spread to all corners of the country. New reports suggest that around 15 protesters have been killed and hundreds more injured or arrested by security forces.

Up to two million people, including supporters of opposition leader Hossein Mousavi, took to the streets in Tehran on Monday to protest the outcome of the election. Large numbers massed again on Tuesday afternoon despite government threats that they would clamp down on "illegal protests".    » read more »

June 8, 2009 -- "I congratulate the people of Lebanon for holding a peaceful election yesterday. The high turnout and the candidates – too many of whom know personally the violence that has marred Lebanon – are the strongest indications yet of the Lebanese desire for security and prosperity. Once more, the people of Lebanon have demonstrated to the world their courage and the strength of their commitment to democracy.

The United States will continue to support a sovereign and independent Lebanon, committed to peace, including the full implementation of all United Nations Security Council Resolutions. It is our sincere hope that the next government will continue along the path towards building a sovereign, independent and stable Lebanon.    » read more »

June 7, 2009 -- Washington, D.C.-- Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) released the following statement in response Lebanon's successful parliamentary elections:

"Today's parliamentary elections marked a significant step forward for democracy in Lebanon. The people of Lebanon should be commended for rejecting violence and showing their commitment to legitimate political discourse with a spirited campaign and high voter turnout.

“If early results hold, the leaders of the March 14th movement deserve a great deal of credit for persevering through difficult times. They will have our continuing support as they work to build a better future for the Lebanese people.    » read more »

But US Needs Stronger Message for Repressive Regional Allies

June 4, 2009 -- (Cairo) – President Barack Obama’s much-anticipated June 4, 2009, speech to the Muslim world avoided confronting authoritarian governments directly, but sent a welcome message that Washington would not let the prospect of empowering Islamist parties deter it from supporting democracy in the region, Human Rights Watch said today.    » read more »

June 4, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement following President Obama's speech in Cairo earlier today:

"I applaud President Obama's historic speech earlier today in Cairo, which signaled that America is ready to begin a new era of mutual respect, understanding, and dialogue with the Muslim world. In his speech, President Obama reaffirmed America's commitment to resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict, and reminded regional leaders of their responsibilities to cultivate an atmosphere of greater tolerance, security, and peace.    » read more »