MADRID — The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) and its Commander Lt. Gen. Admiral Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Ghufaili celebrated the ceremonial launching of the warship of "AVANTE 2200" Corvette, which is the first of its type within the Sarawat Corvette Project.

The warship was officially named His Majesty's Ship Al-Jubail, as part of its ceremonial launching held in the city of San Fernando, Spain.

RSNF Commander raised the flag of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on HMS Al-Jubail marking its entry into service with the Royal Saudi Naval Forces.

The ceremonial launching was attended by Saudi Ambassador to Spain Azzam bin Abdul Karim Al-Gin; a number of RSNF senior officers; Saudi Military Attaché to Madrid; CEO of Saudi Arabian Military Industries Company (SAMI) for military industries Eng. Waleed bin Abdulmajeed Abu Khalid; Chief of Staff of the Spanish Naval Forces Admiral Antonio Martorell; a number of senior officials from the Spanish government and representatives from Sami-Navantia and Spanish Navantia companies, among others.

To mark the occasion, RSNF Commander Al-Ghufaili delivered a speech in which he expressed his happiness for this remarkable achievement of launching the first warship of the Sarawat project. He said this achievement is a milestone in the history of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, and will contribute to raising the level of readiness of the RSNF to enhance maritime security in the region and protect the vital and strategic interests of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

He also expressed appreciation for the unlimited support enjoyed by the Saudi Armed Forces in general and the Navy in particular by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, the Supreme Commander of all military forces, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, as well as by Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Minister of Defense.

For his part, SAMI CEO, Eng. Waleed bin Abdulmajeed Abu Khalid explained in a speech that the Saudi defense industries sector and SAMI have the right to be proud of this accomplishment and success achieved through cooperation with leading international companies in the field of original equipment manufacturers, in order to serve the Saudi armed forces.

“We are confident that HMS Al-Jubail will be a valuable addition, and will support the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's defense capabilities, extending thanks and great appreciation to the wise leadership for their ongoing support and directive, and thanks to the Royal Saudi Naval Forces for their trust in us.

He also pointed out that SAMI Navantia continues to support our efforts to build a sustainable defense sector in the Kingdom, including the development of Hazem system, the first Saudi naval combat system of its type, in addition to supporting the localization of defense technologies through technology transfer and nurturing talented national cadres through on-the-job training.

SAMI CEO Eng. Waleed Abu Khalid further said HMS Al-Jubail is characterized by the latest combat systems to deal with all air, surface and subsurface threats, as well as electronic wars, which have more capabilities than many of the world's navies, as the warships of the Sarawat project will be equipped with the first Saudi battle management system by 100% under the name Hazem system, which was developed by Sami Navantia. — SPA