The 966

0:15 --- Saudi Arabia keeps ranking high in Covid mitigation indices, recently ranking second for recovery from the Pandemic by Nikkei
2:49 ---  Saudi Arabian authorities have imposed a permanent ban on planting of palm trees - the symbol of Saudi Arabia - along roads as well as in parks and gardens across the Kingdom. This is part of measures to prevent the spread of the red palm weevil.  The proportion of Saudi Arabia’s land area covered by forest has remained unchanged since 1990 at about 0.5%.
4:33 --- It's been another big week for the price of oil. Saudi Arabia is making more money on oil, - a lot more money - and that's good news for Vision 2030.  And now, with oil prices rising, Aramco's value is approaching the $2 Trillion mark.
17:23 - Saudi and Iran continue talks. The Biden Administration said it welcomes the news of direct communication between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Saudi Arabia confirmed on Sunday it had held its first round of direct talks with Iran’s new government last month. But Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said the talks were still in the exploratory phase. Saudi and Iranian officials reportedly met in Iraq last month,
but the number of situations that Saudi Arabia and Iran find themselves at opposing ends, in Yemen, Syria, and elsewhere, is significant. 
20:53 - The end of a piracy dispute between Saudi Arabia and Premier League broadcaster beIN Sports, which is based in Qatar, clears the way for a PIF-led group to buy the Newcastle United for $400 million. This is over a year after Saudi Arabia first tried, but failed, to acquire the team. 

What was it like to host the G20 in Saudi Arabia, and what was left behind? In 2020, Saudi Arabia became the first Arab nation to assume the G20 presidency. Hosting the G20 is a massive undertaking, involving close to two years of event planning, policy development and strategy, and much more. In the first feature-length interview for The 966, the hosts interview Abdullah AlHassan, who served as Saudi G20 Sous Sherpa and Executive Director of Policy during the Saudi G20 Presidency.
The hosts asked Abdullah about the successes and challenges with hosting the G20 in a year the world faced the global pandemic, and discussed the legacy of hosting such a large-scale international diplomatic event. Abdullah also talked about the work that goes on behind the scenes with the G20. The 966 also asked AlHassan, who left the IMF to serve as Sous-Sherpa for the G20 Saudi secretariat and has returned to the IMF, about the legacy of Saudi Arabia's G20 Presidency going forward.

"Those who work on the G20, which many of them by the way are youth -- this is the human capital that will be left, that's already been left, after the G20 that will continue to sharpen their skills in terms of policy, negotiation, event planning, and so forth," AlHassan told The 966. "Those people who work at the G20, now they are in a different part of the government, executing the government's vision for the future, Vision 2030. So those people, they acquire a unique international skills that now they are able basically to put it into place in order to execute domestic policies that will take the country to a higher level in the future."

The G20 is a significant organization. The 20 member-nations represent 90% of global GDP, 80% of world trade, and two-thirds of the world's population.

"When you have to create this out of whole cloth and go from zero to a hundred, it was really a masterclass for Saudi," SUSTG's president and 966 co-host Richard Wilson noted, adding that a whole generation of Saudis expanded their skillset as a result of working on hosting the G20 meetings in Saudi Arabia.

Abdullah AlHassan discussed how he was first tapped to serve his country for the G20 presidency, and how, during his two year sabbatical from the IMF, he worked his way up from senior policy advisor to serving in two more senior roles: Sous-Sherpa and the Executive Director of Policy. 

"These are basically two jobs. I mean, as a director of policy, you are building the policies, coordinating with at least 12 government entities on a day-to-day basis, trying to execute the presidency agenda...And then as a Sous-Sherpa, more as a political engagement with other Sherpa offices to ensure that they can reach consensus and this creates the issues where needed.

Organizing the G20 is a significant undertaking for every host country. But just two months into the Saudi presidency, the organizers were dealt a curveball: how to proceed with the event during the global pandemic.

"When the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a pandemic just before middle of March, we moved swiftly, and his majesty King Salman invited the G20 countries for an extraordinary summit that was held on March 26," AlHassan said. "And it was Chaired by his majesty king Salman. So during the summit, the leaders, they were really committed to addressing both the health and the economic crisis, and at that summit, they sent pretty much two messages....One, protecting life and livelihoods. This is a top priority. And second, ensuring that the economy can get back on its feet over the short term, but also ensuring having a stronger recovery over the medium term."

"2020 was a very challenging year globally. You have a healthcare crisis, you have an economic crisis. We have also an election that is happening in many countries. So there are lots of moving parts at the same time, but what you have, you have a commitment from the G20 countries to deal with the issues. Yes, there are some easier issues than another, but as long as you continue to have the dialogue among the G20 countries, you are able to reach a consensus."

🎥[WATCH NOW ON YOUTUBE]  🎧[PODCAST VERSION - AUDIO]  📝[FULL TEXT TRANSCRIPT OF THE INTERVIEW]

3:00 - A Contemporary Art Biennale in Saudi Arabia
7:00 - The future of OPEC and oil in the global energy transition
17:30 - Lucid Air's New Car

In the first episode of THE 966, Richard Wilson and Lucien Zeigler discuss their "one big thing" this week in Saudi Arabia. Then the two hosts discuss the meaning behind Saudi Arabia's National Day, the dramatic increase in new residential mortgages in the Kingdom, and assessing U.S.-Saudi relations under President Biden so far. 

The 966 is a new podcast covering all things Saudi Arabia. In this introduction to the show, hosts Richard Wilson and Lucien Zeigler discuss the origins of The 966, why Saudi Arabia is strategically important and why it’s fortunes – good or bad – matter to the U.S. The 966 explores the news, people, and issues that actually matter for the Kingdom through weekly conversations and interviews with Saudi business leaders, officials, newsmakers and others. 
THE 966 goes beyond the headlines and tackles complex economic, social and political issues – why they matter to and within Saudi Arabia, how they impact U.S. interests in the region and what they mean for the U.S.-Saudi relationship.