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Iran signs deal with China to connect key port to rail network

China will build a train line connecting the Iranian port of Bushehr to the rest of the country's railway network under a US$700 million (S$920 million) deal signed on Wednesday (March 7).

The agreement was inked in Tehran in the presence of Iranian Transport Minister Abbas Akhoundi and officials from China Machinery Industry Construction Group.

It will see the group build a 400-kilometre railway between the Gulf port and the southern city of Shiraz, IRNA state news agency cited officials as saying without specifying when construction would get underway.

This would complete the "North-South Railway Corridor" in line with Iran's goal of becoming a transport hub for goods between the Gulf, the Indian subcontinent, Russia and Central Asia.

Israel to begin promoting railway linking Haifa seaport with Saudi Arabia

“Tracks for Regional Peace” is based on the planned extension of railway tracks in northern Israel, which would link Haifa’s seaport to Jordan’s rail network, which in turn will be linked with that of Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Arab states.

“There are two central components at the heart of this initiative,” Katz explained when discussing the plan back in April. “Israel as a land bridge between Europe and the Mediterranean and Jordan; and Jordan as a regional transportation hub, which will be connected to a railroad system to Israel and the Mediterranean in the West; to Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states and Iraq in the East and southeast; and to the Red Sea, through Aqaba and Eilat, in the south.”

“Beyond its contribution to Israel’s economy, the Jordanian and the Palestinian economies, the initiative will connect Israel economically and politically to the region and will consolidate the pragmatic camp in the region,” he claimed.

Klaus Kleinfeld named adviser to Saudi crown prince, NEOM appoints new CEO

Klaus Kleinfeld, who was tasked with developing the NEOM project in northern Saudi Arabia, has been appointed as an adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Kingdom announced.

Kleinfeld “will take over wider responsibilities to enhance the economic, technological and financial development of Saudi Arabia,” said a statement.

The German, who is former chairman and CEO of Alcoa Inc., and former president and CEO of Siemens AG, is set to begin his role on August 1, 2018, with new NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr taking the helm of the ambitious Saudi project on the same day.

Chinese investment in Israeli tech is growing, and it's 'quite welcome' for some

As the trade war between Washington and Beijing rolls on and investments from the mainland come under greater scrutiny in the U.S. and Europe, Chinese companies are increasingly turning elsewhere.

One country poised to gain in investment is Israel.

“There’s been a secular uptrend in Chinese investment in Israel for the past eight to 10 years, but it has been accelerating,” said Steven Schoenfeld, founder and CIO of BlueStar Indexes, a firm that develops Israel-focused indexes and exchange-traded funds.

The vast majority of investment in Israel today still originates from domestic sources as well as the U.S. and Europe, but Schoenfeld said money from China and the broader Asian region has “grown a lot,” with companies from Singapore, South Korea and Japan all “establishing some beachhead.”

Speaking with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Schoenfeld said Chinese companies are attracted to Israeli technology for multiple reasons.

Beyond the potential applications of such tech in China, Schoenfeld said many of the Middle Eastern country's companies have global operations and are at the same standards as Silicon Valley — without the sky-high valuations.

Some safeguards have been put in place for foreign investment in sectors such as defense and cybersecurity, where Israel has “some of the same protections” as the U.S., but Schoenfeld said Chinese investment into the country’s tech sector has generally been “quite welcome.”

The scope of Chinese investment in Israel covers “pretty much every major disruptive tech sector,” he said, pointing to industries such as the autonomous and electric vehicles spaces, where the major Chinese auto manufacturers maintain research and development centers.

In other sectors such as the application of artificial intelligence, Schoenfeld said Israel is "one of the leaders in almost every field.”

Israel Is Giving China the Keys to Its Largest Port – and the U.S. Navy May Abandon Israel

China will operate Haifa port, near Israel's alleged nuclear-armed submarines, and it seems no one in Israel thought about the strategic ramifications.

“When China acquires ports,” Horev said, “it does so under the guise of maintaining a trade route from the Indian Ocean via the Suez Canal to Europe, such as the port of Piraeus in Greece. Does an economic horizon like this have a security impact? We are not weighing that possibility sufficiently. One of the senior American figures at the conference raised the question of whether the U.S. Sixth Fleet can see Haifa as a home port. In light of the Chinese takeover, the question is no longer on the agenda.”

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