Post AZVEZXZk7TAkdKDfG4 by mbpaz@mas.to
 (DIR) More posts by mbpaz@mas.to
 (DIR) Post #AZUhEP851vQXrxatnM by WahbAllat@mas.to
       2023-09-06T14:16:54Z
       
       0 likes, 0 repeats
       
       I can't read #Spanish so I have no idea how people are reacting to #SaudiArabia 's #STC acquiring 9.9% of #Telefónica S.A. -sometimes I wish I couldn't understand English either-It would be fun though, if STC chose to rename Telefónica to al-Andalus
       
 (DIR) Post #AZUhEQ87JH3CyMcRUW by oatmeal@emacs.ch
       2023-09-06T15:12:02Z
       
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       @WahbAllat what a horrible day for #Spain. It’s not just “foreign acquisitions” that’s a problem, it should be a principal and moral stand against Saudi Arabia and what it represents. It’s not a country that should be normalized through the greed. The official communication is focused on strategic infrastructure though:La vicepresidenta primera también quiso lanzar un mensaje de “confianza y de tranquilidad” al respecto y resaltó que el Ejecutivo liderado por Pedro Sánchez ha “reforzado” durante sus mandatos “todos los mecanismos de protección de las inversiones exteriores” y se encuentra analizando los elementos que rodean a esta compra desde el punto de vista del sector de actividad, su relación con la seguridad y la defensa de España, la participación en el capital y el ejercicio de los derechos de voto.
       
 (DIR) Post #AZUhlBW6f61bCuSmMC by WahbAllat@mas.to
       2023-09-06T15:17:58Z
       
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       @oatmeal I understand your concerns and I'm not going to argue against them. But they are the legitimate rules of Saudi Arabia with popular local support. As long as they have the support of the tribe chiefs, you can't pretend they are abnormal. Any other dynasty ruling over Saudi Arabia and sourcing its legitimacy through Islam and tribal support will be the same.For things to change, the culture substantially from the bottom-up needs to change.
       
 (DIR) Post #AZUi45T7NC13x24wPg by oatmeal@emacs.ch
       2023-09-06T15:21:23Z
       
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       @WahbAllat good for them. This is not about bringing democracy to the Middle East, rather the West should not be profiting off despotic regimes, ie Russia and North Korea etc IMHO.
       
 (DIR) Post #AZVEZXZk7TAkdKDfG4 by mbpaz@mas.to
       2023-09-06T21:25:37Z
       
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       @oatmeal @WahbAllat Telefónica being a formerly public company, any significant purchase of shares by a foreign investor can be expected to attract some public scrutiny (as it happened when BlackRock purchased almost 5%). The date for this purchase could not be much worse, just days after a new law imposed further foreign investment restrictions on strategic companies, and the week Twitter is accused of deliberately leaking to Saudi Arabia the identities of Saudi activists.