Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) and South Africa’s Paramount Group announced on Wednesday the signing of a high-level defense collaboration agreement in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 for the creation of an integrated defense industrial system.

Under the agreement, SAMI and Paramount Group, a global aerospace and technology company, would collaborate on the development of technologies and capabilities across the land, sea and air domains, as well as system integration. This would be part of the efforts aiming to support the Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia’s ambitious economic development plan, which aims to localize half of its military spending by 2030.

“The collaboration between SAMI and Paramount Group will play a large part in helping to achieve the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030,” SAMI CEO Andreas Schwer said in a statement. “This will contribute significantly to further enhancing the capability of Saudi Armed Forces and increasing local content in addition to creating new job opportunities and training for Saudi youths to increase their contribution and raise their role in this vital industry in particular and the national economy in general,” he said.

“Paramount Group has an established track record of working in partnership with customer countries, helping to create local defense industrial capabilities through technology and skills transfer. We believe there are many synergies between our companies that can be leveraged to build the defense industrial capability that Saudi requires” Schwer added.

On his part, chairman of Paramount Group Ivor Ichikowitz, said: “Saudi Arabia is important to Paramount Group as much of the technology that we have created over the years has been developed with the Middle East in mind. We share the vision of the Crown Prince and his economic development plan.”

Schwer stated last year that SAMI had approached a number of South African defense companies to help it fulfill its domestic defense needs. The deal with Paramount is the first with a South African firm to be announced. Saudi Arabia made a $1 billion bid last year for a broad partnership with South Africa’s state defense company Denel that would have included acquisition of a minority stake in its joint venture with Germany’s Rheinmetall.