The story: Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan has made clear that Riyadh will change its approach to foreign assistance, conditioning future packages to strengthen the Kingdom’s international investments. This comes as Saudi Arabia has recently provided aid to longstanding partners Egypt and Pakistan to assist with economic difficulties. Of further note, Jadaan also suggested that the Kingdom will consider trading oil in currencies other than the US dollar—and particularly the Chinese yuan. 

The coverage: Jadaan first made the announcement of a policy shift on foreign aid at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 18. 

• The finance minister declared a change to the Kingdom’s foreign assistance programs, saying, “We used to give direct grants and deposits without strings attached and we are changing that. We are working with multilateral institutions to actually say we need to see reforms.” 

• The top finance official added, “We are taxing our people, we are also expecting others to do the same, to do their efforts. We want to help but we want you to also do your part.” 

Meanwhile, Saudi-funded Al-Arabiya TV has reported that Jadaan has also signaled that...