Presidential Palace News

Naval forces from the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen on Sunday foiled an "imminent terrorist" attack by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in the southern Red Sea, a major commercial shipping channel, the coalition said.The forces destroyed an unmanned boat laden with explosives that was launched from Hodeidah province in western Yemen, coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki said in a statement on Saudi state news agency SPA, without identifying the targets.There was no immediate confirmation from the Houthi movement…

The Cyprus shipping sector continues to make news, as Dr. Heinrich Schulte, the chairman of the Schulte Group, underlined his long-term commitment to the Cypriot shipping industry when he met with H.E. Mr. Nicos Anastasiades, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia, on June 11, 2018. Earlier this month MarineLink.com interviewed Natasa Pilides, Cyprus Deputy Minister of Shipping, on the sidelines of the Posidonia exhibition in Athens, Greece…

Indonesia and India pledged on Wednesday to step up defense and maritime cooperation, with plans to develop a strategic Indonesian naval port in the Indian Ocean, the leaders of the two countries said after meeting in Jakarta. Indonesian President Joko Widodo met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss, among other issues, developing infrastructure and an economic zone at Sabang, on the tip of Sumatra island and at the mouth of the Malacca Strait, one of the busiest shipping channels for global trade. "India is a strategic defence partner...and we will continue to advance our cooperation in developing infrastructure, including at Sabang Island and the Andaman Islands," Widodo told a news conference after the meeting at the presidential palace.

Indonesia and Japan have agreed to step up maritime security and start discussions on a major railway project to link the Southeast Asian nation's capital and second-biggest city, reported Reuters. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said during a visit to Indonesia that the two Island nations would bolster their cooperation in maritime security and military affairs. "As a fellow maritime country, Japan is prioritizing maritime cooperation with Indonesia. Japan is encouraging active cooperation in the field of maritime security with Indonesia (to develop) its remote islands through Indonesia-Japan Maritime Forum set up last December," Abe said in a joint press conference with President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) at the Bogor Presidential Palace on Sunday.

Standardising trade processes and developing Vietnam’s infrastructure will attract more investment from global trade enablers like DP World, according to its Group Chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, who met with Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang at the presidential palace in Hanoi recently. During their meeting, Mr. Bin Sulayem expressed his interest in further developing trade relations between Dubai and Vietnam, with the support of simplified and seamless cargo movement processes. He also suggested that the development of roads connecting sea, land and air are essential to boost Vietnam’s future trade potential. He added that with the right incentives DP World is looking for further opportunities to invest in the country.

DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Mr Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem has met the President of Somaliland, Mr Ahmed Mohamed Mahamoud, during a visit to the country following the signing of a term sheet agreement in Dubai earlier this month to invest in the multi-purpose Port of Berbera. Mr Bin Sulayem and senior executives from DP World were hosted in the Presidential Palace in the capital Hargeisa where they also met government ministers and officials including Foreign Minister, Dr Saad Ali Shire; Minister of Presidential Affairs, Mr Mahmoud Hashi; Minister of Finance, Ms Zam Zam Aden; Minister of National Planning and Development, Mr Ali Hussein Ismail and Minister of Trade and Investment, Mr Hussein Adan Igeh.

DP World, one of the world's biggest port operators, and the Cypriot logistics and services company GAP Vassilopoulos Public have won two concessions to manage commercial activities at Limassol Port in Cyprus starting in January. P&O Maritime Cyprus, a unit of DP World, won a 15-year concession to exclusively provide port marine services at Limassol. DP World will own 75 per cent of each joint venture, with its Cypriot partner owning the rest. Three contracts on the privatisation of Limassol port services were signed today at the Presidential Palace, marking ‘a new page for Cyprus’ great port’ according to Minister of Transportation Marios Demetriades.

Brazil was due to publish a tariff increase of 11.75 percent on imported ethanol on Monday, and the traders in U.S. ethanol, which makes up the bulk of imports to Brazil, were concerned about the move, expected to benefit local mills. In late May, the Senate passed Bill 668, which raises Brazil's so-called PIS-COFINS taxes on a broad array of imports including ethanol to 11.75 percent. President Dilma Rousseff signed the bill into law late on Friday, a spokesman at the Presidential Palace said on Monday. It remained unclear whether she included any vetoes to parts of the bill the Senate passed. The federal government's Official Daily Register (DOU) did not include the signed bill in its Monday morning edition but the spokesman said the signed bill would appear in the afternoon edition.

China on Wednesday defended the actions of its vessels in the disputed South China Sea after the Philippines accused China's coast guard of using water cannon on Philippine fishing boats and urged Manila to increase its "education" of its fishermen. Filipino fishermen said that China's coast guard boarded their fishing boats and threw away fish catch and fishing gear last week after spraying them with water in a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. The presidential palace in Manila said China's coast guard used water cannon on Monday to drive away a group of Filipino fishermen at Scarborough Shoal, damaging some of their wooden boats. Chinese ships rammed a fishing boat in the area a few months ago.

Filipino activists denounced China's coast guard on Tuesday for turning water cannon on Philippine fishing boats in disputed waters, near where hundreds of Filipino and American Marines landed on a beach in a mock assault. The presidential palace in Manila said China's coast guard used water cannon on Monday to drive away a group of Filipino fishermen at Scarborough Shoal, damaging some of their wooden boats. Chinese ships rammed a fishing boat in the area a few months ago. China in 2012 took control of Scarborough Shoal, about 130 miles (210 km) west of a former U.S. naval base northwest of Manila, preventing Filipino fishermen from getting near the rich fishing grounds.

Filipino activists denounced China's coast guard on Tuesday for turning water cannon on Philippine fishing boats in disputed waters, near where hundreds of Filipino and American Marines landed on a beach in a mock assault. The presidential palace in Manila said China's coast guard used water cannon on Monday to drive away a group of Filipino fishermen at Scarborough Shoal, damaging some of their wooden boats. Chinese ships rammed a fishing boat in the area a few months back. China in 2012 took control of Scarborough Shoal, about 130 miles west of a former U.S. naval base northwest of Manila, preventing Filipino fishermen from getting near the rich fishing grounds.

Brazil's state-controlled oil company Petrobras signed on Friday a $500 million loan from Japan to build eight ship platforms for the oil industry, as part of the visit of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Brazil. Japan will also help Brazil's state development bank BNDES promote investment by small and medium-sized companies in Brazil through its bank for international cooperation, JBIC, according to another deal signed in the Brazilian presidential palace. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Writing by Silvio Cascione; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) – the principal global trade association for shipowners representing over 80% of the world merchant fleet – met in Limassol, Cyprus last week for its Annual General Meeting (AGM). The meeting was hosted by the Cyprus Shipping Chamber in its 25th anniversary year, and commenced with a gala dinner hosted by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, His Excellency Nicos Anastasiades, at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia. Representatives of ICS member national shipowners’ associations…

China's positioning of its biggest mobile oil rig in disputed waters in the South China Sea seriously threatens peace, stability, and maritime safety, Vietnam's prime minister said on Wednesday, urging the international community to condemn Beijing's action. Nguyen Tan Dung held two-way talks with Philippine President Benigno Aquino during an official two-day visit to Manila to discuss defence and security and economic and cultural ties. "China's illegal placement of the oil rig seriously threatens peace, stability, maritime safety and freedom of navigation in the East Sea," the Vietnamese prime minister said in a statement after the meeting at the presidential palace in Manila.

Parents of children killed when a passenger ferry sank last month led a sombre march on South Korea's presidential palace in the early hours of Friday morning, where they demanded to meet with President Park Geun-hye. Clutching memorial portraits of their children, family members and grieving parents were prevented by riot police from nearing the palace, and instead sat in the middle of the road where they sobbed, wailed and shouted in anger. "Listen to us, President Park. Just give us ten seconds!," one family member said, using a portable address system. "Why are you blocking the way?," said another. Seated on the ground in the middle of the night, they wore beige blankets and huddled in rows on the cold floor.

US says not planning to rebuild old bases or construct new ones. Obama says goal is not to contain China while Philippines' Aquino says Chinese shouldn't be concerned. President Barack Obama said a new military pact signed with the Philippines on Monday granting a larger presence for U.S. forces would bolster the Southeast Asian country's maritime security, but was not aimed at countering China's growing military might. The agreement, which will have an initial 10-year term, was touted as the highlight of Obama's first visit to the Philippines, the United States' oldest ally in the region. It sets the framework for a beefed-up rotation of U.S. troops, ships and warplanes through the Philippines, part of a rebalancing of U.S. resources towards fast-growing Asia and the Pacific.

Terminal Muelle Norte at Peru’s largest port is the latest of three expansions into new areas won by APM Terminals this year. Lima, Peru- The new 30-year concession contract for the development and operation of Terminal Muelle Norte at the Port of Callao was signed today by Peruvian President Alan Garcia and representatives of APM Terminals and local partner Central Portuária S.A.C. in the Presidential Palace in Peru’s Capital City of Lima. “Our vision is to transform Terminal…

Ribcraft completed commissioning exercises for a fleet of RIBCRAFT 7.8's delivered to the Philippines Presidential Security Group earlier this year. The RIBs will be used by the Presidential Security Group to detect, identify, and disable potential threats in the vicinity of the Presidential Palace located on the in . Under the contract, RIBCRAFT directed final commissioning and post delivery inspections in country earlier this month. The all black RIBs, with blacked out hulls, tubes, consoles, frames, and antennas, are designed to not only destroy potential threats to the Palace but to intimidate vessels from approaching. Intended for rapid response, the 25.8 ft. RIBCRAFT 7.8s are outfitted with twin 150 hp Honda four stroke outboards.

Former Comptroller General Dani Ariel Kuzniecky Barsky officially assumed his new position as chairman of the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) Board of Directors at an inaugural ceremony conducted at the presidential palace last Monday. Among the first duties in his new role, Kuzniecky headed an ACP commission to present the second quarterly expansion report to the National Assembly of Panama. He also presided over the ACP Board of Directors meeting, where the proposal to restructure the Panama Canal's pricing system for the next three years was approved. Following the decision made by the Board, Mr. Kuzniecky submitted the proposal to the Cabinet Council of the Republic of Panama, which later provided final approval on the proposal Wednesday afternoon.