THE FIRST ENGLISH LANGUAGE DAILY IN FREE KUWAITEstablished in 1977 / www.arabtimesonline.com

emergency number 112 NO. 16628 36 PAGES 150 FILS

Speaker, deputy send get well wishes

Hariri in Beirut to stay

PM puts resignation on hold

Amir in hospital for check after cold

Euro/KD 0.3565

Yen/KD 0.0027

British £/KD 0.4018

KSE -2.76 pts at closing Nov 22See Page 29

Dow -66.76 pts at 21:30 Nov 22See Page 30

Nasdaq +3.48 pts at 21:30 Nov 22

FTSE +7.68 pts at closing Nov 22

Nikkei +106.67 pts at closing Nov 22

Gold $1,286.95 per oz (London)

US$/KDUS$/KD 0.30210/20 0.30210/20

NYMEX crude $57.72 per barrel

Brent crude $62.97 per barrel

3-month $ LIBOR rate 1.4540%

▲

■

▲

▼

▲

▲

▼

▲

▲

■

▲

▲

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri waves to his supporters who rallied outside his residence in Beirut, Lebanon on Nov 22. Hariri returned to Lebanon a day earlier and in a surprise decision, said he was putting his resignation on hold

responding to a request from the president to give more time for consultations. (AP)

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2017 / RABEE’A 5, 1439 AH

Continued on Page 8Continued on Page 8 Continued on Page 8 Continued on Page 8

DUBAI, Nov 22, (Agencies): Iraq has hired Japan’s Toyo Engineering to help build a gas pipeline to Kuwait and a related petrochemical plant as Bagh-dad looks to reduce flaring and finish paying reparations owed for its 1990 invasion of its neighbour.

The project, details of which have not been reported before, would allow Kuwait to diver-sify its gas imports in the wake a political crisis between Gulf states and major supplier Qatar.

It would also deal a blow to Royal Dutch Shell, which aimed to be the dominant gas player in Iraq before relations with Baghdad soured follow-ing Shell’s exit from large oil projects.

“Iraq needs to urgently re-duce gas flaring as it trails be-hind all targets it has promised the World Bank,” said a senior industry source working on the project but not allowed to dis-cuss it publicly.

“The Kuwaiti gas project is a quick fix and an easy way to monetise gas resources.”

The World Bank, which has repeatedly made reducing gas flaring a condition of lending to Baghdad, did not respond to a request for immediate com-ment.

Toyo is proposing to con-struct a gas pipeline and start deliveries after 2019, industry sources said.

Toyo’s chief financial of-ficer, Kensuke Waki, told Re-uters that talks about a pipeline and a petrochemical plant were ongoing but a final investment decision had not yet been made.

Kuwait is very keen on the project and has offered a sov-ereign guarantee for up to 80 percent of the costs, industry sources said. No total cost has been announced.

Kuwait’s oil ministry did not respond to a request for imme-diate comment. Oil minister Issam Al-Marzouq said last month that talks between Ku-wait and Iraq were focused on a proposal to use gas to help pay Baghdad’s final $4.6 billion in war compensation payments.

Iraqi oil ministry spokesman Asim Jihad said talks were fo-cusing on price and confirmed that supplies could be used to help pay off reparations.

Industry sources told Reuters the talks have faltered over price, however.

They said Kuwait is pushing for a price of less than $3 per mbtu (million British thermal unit), in line with US Henry Hub prices. But that is less than half what Iraq pays in the north when importing gas from neighbouring Iran.

“The price of gas remains the key sticking point for now,” one of the sources said.

BEIRUT, Nov 22, (Agencies): Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Wednesday he was suspending his surprise resig-nation, pending talks, provid-ing a potential way out of a political crisis that has rocked the country.

And in a rousing address be-fore large crowds of support-ers gathered outside his Beirut home, he pledged he would stay in the country and protect its “stability”.

Lebanon has been thrown into turmoil by Hariri’s shock November 4 announcement from Saudi Arabia that he was stepping down, as well as his prolonged absence afterwards.

The resignation was seen as a ratcheting up of tensions in the long-running rivalry be-tween Saudi Arabia and Iran, and raised fears that Lebanon would be paralysed by regional tensions.

Hours after his arrival back in Beirut, Hariri met with Pres-ident Michel Aoun, who had refused to accept the premier’s resignation until he returned to Lebanon.

“I discussed my resignation with the president of the re-public who asked me to wait before submitting it... and al-low for more consultations,” Hariri told reporters after-wards.

“I agreed to this request.”

DUBAI, Nov 22, (RTRS): The US State Department on Tues-day warned citizens to “con-sider the risks” when travelling to Saudi Arabia due to militant threats and the threat of ballis-tic missile attacks on civilians by rebels in Yemen.

The warning comes two weeks after US-allied Saudi Arabia said it had shot down a ballistic missile fired by Iran-aligned Houthis from Yemen towards the Saudi capital Ri-yadh. The missile, which the Houthis said was in response to Saudi-led air strikes on civil-ians in Yemen, was shot down near Riyadh airport without causing any casualties.

“Terrorist threats persist throughout Saudi Arabia, in-cluding in major cities such as Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dhahran, and attacks can occur without warning anywhere in the coun-try,” the State Department said in the warning, which was also posted on the US embassy’s website.

“Terrorist groups, including the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and its affiliates have targeted both Saudi and Western government interests,

SOCHI, Russia, Nov 22, (Agencies): Vladimir Putin called Wednesday for “concessions and compromise” from all parties in Syria’s six-year conflict as he kicked off a key summit with the leaders of Turkey and Iran aimed at reviving stuttering peace negotiations.

The summit with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Black Sea resort of Sochi came two days after the Russian leader hosted surprise talks with the war-torn country’s President Bashar al-Assad there.

“It is obvious that the reform process will not be simple, it will require compromise and concessions from all parties, including obviously the Syrian gov-ernment,” Putin said.

“I count on the fact that Russia, Iran and Turkey will put in their best efforts to make this work as productive as possible,” he added.

Putin added that there was a “real chance” to end Syria’s war which monitors say has killed more than 330,000 people as he said Russia, Turkey and Iran had managed to prevent the collapse of the war-torn coun-try.

Turkey’s Erdogan for his part said the three countries had to intensify efforts to try to settle the crisis.

“We need to make significant progress on the politi-cal solution,” he said in translated remarks.

“I believe that we will make critical decisions here.”Iran’s Rouhani said the three countries’ strategy was

“based on partnership and not competition, on friend-ship and not on animosity”

“By cooperating, our countries destroyed the decay-ing body of terror” in Syria, he said.

Russia claims to have practically ended the military conflict through its intervention, but the various sides

US warns onSaudi travel

Compromise soughtat key Syria summit

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 22, (KUNA): Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah said Wednesday that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ah-mad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah has been admitted to hospital for a normal medical checkup after going through a cold.

Kuwait’s National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-

Ghanim said on Wednesday that the Kuwaiti people’s thoughts and prayers are with His Highness the Amir as he completes medical examinations after contracting a cold.

Kuwait’s Deputy National Assembly Speaker Essa Al-Kandari on Wednesday prayed for “His Highness the Amir’s good health” as he undergoes medical checkups after catch-ing a cold.

In a statement, the Kuwaiti lawmaker said that he and his fellow citizens “wish His Highness the Amir a speedy recov-ery.”

Opinion

By Ahmed Al-JarallahEditor-in-Chief, the Arab Times

MANY observers look at the movements of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as slow and does not match the magnitude of the incident; hence, they are sur-prised by any measure that the Saudi leadership takes on issues concerning local or foreign af-fairs.

Those who know the nature of the House of Saud have realized very well its political philosophy. It has been unchanged since it was anchored by the late King Abdu-laziz when he said, “My principle and method never start with ag-gression. Instead, I wait and have patience with the aggressor as I attempt to mend whatever can be mended. I endure until those close and far to me accuse me of cow-ardice and fear. I only strike when patience does not find a place.”

This is why the Kingdom con-tinues to refrain from taking a step until all means of forbear-ance and diplomacy are exhaust-ed – whether the past or current leadership represented by King Salman and his Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman.

The Kingdom did not resort to any military option concerning Yemen and its issues. It resorted to military option only when diplomatic and peaceful efforts were exhausted, in addition to the paralysis that the agreement tailored by Gulf countries sus-tained owing to the Houthi rebels and deposed Yemeni leader and their terrorist operations along the Saudi-Yemeni border or oc-cupation of the capital Sanaa and vast areas of Yemen.

This necessary reaction of the Kingdom came at a time people thought it bowed to the inevi-table. Nevertheless, when the

Beware end ofSaudi patience

Email: ahmed@aljarallah.com

Follow me on:

ahmedaljarallah@gmail.com

Continued on Page 8

Iraq donor talks in Kuwait

Gas pipeline to payoff war reparations

Newswatch

By Local affairs analystKUWAIT CITY, Nov 22: Parallel to ambiguity hov-ering over the constitu-tionality and legality of the recent amendment to traffi c laws regarding penalties for not using safety belt, us-ing mobile phone by hand while, driving and parking on pavement, Director of the General Public Rela-tions and Security Media Department Brigadier Adel Al-Hashash disclosed that the ministry will deport any expatriate who repeats the violation of driving without safety belt and use mobile by hand while driving.

In a televised interview concerning the new traf-fi c law and controversial penalties introduced for the above-mentioned violations to impound the vehicle for two months, Al-Hashash pointed out that an expatri-ate who repeats the violation of not using safety belt and uses mobile phone while driving will be sent packing.

The traffi c law permits impounding of vehicle, while existing articles give the Minister of Interior the right to deport those who vi-olate general order and laws of the country. He called on the public to adhere to traffi c rules and cooperate with the traffi c offi cers for the safety of motorists and other road users.

❑ ❑ ❑

KUWAIT CITY: Weather forecasters said Kuwait will experience a bitterly cold winter this year and temper-atures will drop in the next few days, reports Al-Qabas daily.

Astronomer Adel Al-Saadoun explained the recent rain shower is an in-dicator of the coming heavy rains.

❑ ❑ ❑

GAZA: A sum of $1.7 mil-lion, part of the $200 million Kuwaiti donation aimed at the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, was delivered to the authorities, said the Palestinian government Wednesday.

Palestinian Minister of Public Works and Housing Mufeed Hasayneh said that the new batch would be used to reconstruct Gaza’s indus-trial facilities.

Hasayneh thanked Ku-wait for this generous do-nation, which refl ected the strong ties linking Palestin-ians and Kuwaitis.

In November of 2014,

‘Deportation forrepeat offender’

Continued on Page 8

See Page 17