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ABU DHABI – Electric cars can be successful in Gulf countries and other oil-rich states, but only with initial government help, the president and CEO of Nissan and Renault said on Monday in Abu Dhabi.

“Yes, I think it can,” Carlos Ghosn said when asked if the electric car could be successful in oil-producing countries, adding that “it will depend on how much initial support the specific government would give.”

The need for initial assistance is not, however, limited to oil-rich countries, he said.

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KUWAIT CITY – Kuwait and Iraq have agreed “in principle” on a deal to regulate production from the border oilfields that once caused conflict between the two Arab states, the Kuwaiti oil minister said Wednesday.

The deal follows technical negotiations between the two nations and “we have agreed in principle. Kuwait signed the deal and they (Iraq) will be signing it this or next week,” Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Sabah told reporters.

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DHAHRAN – Joseph A. Kenny, Consul General at the US Consulate in Dhahran, said goodbye to Saudi friends and business leaders in the Eastern Province after two years of successful service during which he further cemented ties between Saudi Arabia and the United States.

At a farewell ceremony Monday at the Asharqia Chamber, which was attended by officials of the chamber and leading businessmen, Kenny said he is leaving the Eastern Province with fond memories.

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NEW YORK – World oil prices climbed Friday as investors shrugged off concerns that the US economic recovery could stall following a slower economic growth rate in the second quarter.

New Yorks main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in September, rose 59 cents to $78.95 per barrel.

Londons Brent North Sea crude for September also gained 59 cents to $78.18 per barrel.

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BEIJING – Chinese and German companies signed deals worth billions of dollars to make trucks and power equipment Friday as the prime ministers declared their countries economies had recovered from last years global recession.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel brought the heads of major German corporations with her on a four-day visit to China, underscoring the robust business ties between the two export powerhouses.

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A flare burns from a drill ship recovering oil from the ruptured British Petroleum (BP) oil well over the site in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday off the coast of Louisiana. The spill has been called the largest environmental disaster in American history. US government scientists have estimated that the flow rate of oil gushing out of a ruptured Gulf of Mexico oil well may be as high as 40,000 barrels per day. Oil prices climbed on Tuesday, along with stock markets and the euro, as investors grew more confident about the global economic recovery. New Yorks main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in July, jumped $1.82 to close at $76.94 a barrel. The contract had added more than a dollar Monday and was trading at its highest level since early May. Londons Brent North Sea crude for July delivery rose $1 to settle at $76.20. – AFP

MADINA – The father of Yasser Al-Zahrani who died in detention at Guatanamo Bay has said that his lawyers intend to pursue his case against former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld with the US District Court or the Supreme Court.

“The lawyers are looking at all aspects of the case after it was thrown out on the grounds that his death occurred outside US territory,” Talal Al-Zahrani said.

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RIYADH – A US Federal District Court has ruled in favor of the defunct Riyadh-based Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation (AHIF) branch in Ashland, Oregon and two of its officers including Engr. Solaiman Al-Buthi, the incumbent Director of the Environmental Health Department of Riyadh Municipality.
Al-Buthi hailed the US court verdict saying it was the first step in a long legal battle to clear the AHIF branch in Oregon of all charges, as there are three more cases pending in the US court.
“I am one of the founders of the AHIF branch in Ashland, Oregon and would like to see its name cleared of all charges leveled against it without any valid evidence,” Al-Buthi told Saudi Gazette.
He said after the 9/11 events in the US, the maxim that “(one is) innocent until proven guilty” was changed to read “guilty until proven innocent and that’s what we are trying to do”.
He said that not only the AHIF branch in Ashland, Oregon but all Saudi charities that were operating elsewhere in the world had no links whatsoever with any terror organizations including Al-Qaeda.
The Saudi charities were engaged in the noble cause of helping the needy and deserving members of society and it would be better for the US Administration to resolve any pending issues through mutual cooperation rather than legal battles fought in the court of law, he said.
AHIF, a renowned Riyadh-based international charity that once had more than 70 branches worldwide, sued the US government over the wiretapping program conducted without warrant by the Bush administration.
In his 45-page decision, Judge Vaughn Walker ruled in favor of the AHIF branch in Oregon and two of its officers, who had claimed that they were the subject of illegal surveillance by the US government in 2004.
“In a historic ruling, Judge Vaughn Walker of the US Federal District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco ruled in favor of a US branch of AHIF and two of its lawyers that had sued George W. Bush, former US president and senior government officials for illegally intercepting telephone conversations between Saudi national Solaiman Al-Buthi and his two attorneys,” a copy of the US court verdict, received by Saudi Gazette, said.
Al-Buthi last visited the US in 2000 as his name was put on that country’s no-fly list. He said he was optimistic that he would clear his name and the image of AHIF as they had not done anything wrong. “The truth will stand out even if it takes a long time,” he said.
The Al-Haramain lawsuit was filed in February 2006 by the US chapter of Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation after it was discovered that a transcript accidentally sent to them in August 2004 derived from illegal wiretapping under the illegal Terrorist Surveillance Program (TSP).
AHIF attorney Thomas Nelson hailed the decision and said he will work with the legal team and with the plaintiffs to comply with the judge’s order on pursuing other claims or moving straight to the damages phase, the statement added.
AHIF and the two lawyers will ask for the damages the law allows – $20,200 each, or $100 for each day of illegal surveillance – plus punitive damages and attorneys’ fees. – SG

WASHINGTON – German automaker Daimler pleaded guilty to US charges of bribery and agreed to pay $185 million to settle the affair, the US government said Thursday.

The Justice Department said Daimler and three of its subsidiaries had resolved charges related to a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) investigation into the companys worldwide sales practices.

US District Court Judge Richard Leon approved the settlement at a hearing Thursday in Washington.

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VIENNA – OPEC ministers due to arrive here for their meeting on March 17 say there is no need to change output targets with oil prices above their preferred range, but soft demand is prompting calls to curb overproduction.

“In my opinion, I dont think we are going to see any change, even though inventories are high,” Qatars Oil Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah told Reuters by telephone on Monday.

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