RIYADH — Britain’s Defense Minister Ben Wallace reaffirmed the UK’s enduring commitment to work with Saudi Arabia, with discussion of how to enhance the bilateral relationship yet further in support of regional stability and security.

Wallace made his remarks during his current visit to the Kingdom. The defense secretary held a number of bilateral meetings, including with the Minister for Defense Prince Khalid Bin Salman, and others in the Saudi government.

Defense Secretary Wallace expressed his gratitude to Saudi Arabia following the recent commitment of $410 million in aid for Ukraine, announced during Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan’s visit to Kyiv last weekend.

Wallace said: “It was a pleasure to meet with Prince Khalid Bin Salman and build on the long history of UK-Saudi defense collaboration.”

“The Statement of Intent signed will strengthen our Saudi-UK combat air relationship and our ability to address shared security challenges for decades to come, supporting Saudi Vision 2030 aspirations.”

It was an opportunity to reflect on the strength and depth of the UK-Saudi partnership, including following the signing of the Defense Cooperation Plan in December 2022.

The Defense Ministers signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) during the visit, which will initiate a Partnering Feasibility Study to explore how we can best position our decades long combat air relationship for the future.

Both Governments confirmed a common desire for closer industrial collaboration, to develop key capabilities and boost prosperity in both nations. — SG