Source: http://www.amcostarica.com/
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
President Óscar Arias Sánchez has a date this afternoon with Al-Waleed bin Tala Alsaud, a major investor who is a member of the Saudi royal family.Forbes magazine estimates his fortune at $20 billion. Among his holdings is a major stake in the Four Seasons Hotel group, and that is where he stayed in northwestern Costa Rica.Although his luxury 747 aircraft sprouted flags on landing in Liberia, he is not considered a major player in Saudi politics. However, he is well known as an astute investor and expresses political views of his own. He holds a graduate degree from Syracuse University in New York.Arias has invited the visitor to his Rohrmoser home instead of Casa Presidencial.
Al-Waleed, 52, made news in 2002 when he offered New York City $10 million in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in which the majority of the terrorists were from Saudi Arabia. However, Mayor Rudy Giuliani turned him down because the donation was conditional. Al-Waleed said he wanted the United States to modify its policies in the Middle East, according to the then-mayor.Al-Waleed traveled to the Four Season in a bus, leading an entourage of more than a dozen sports utility vehicles from the Daniel Oduber airport..The visit by the Saudi investor fits with the Arias administration's goal of expanding its overseas contacts. Costa Rica closed its embassy in Jerusalem and moved it to Tel Aviv in part to open doors to Middle Eastern states.
Posted by Roger Vlasos
Broker/Owner
Century21 At the Beach
Playas del Coco, Guanacaste
Website: http://www.century21incostarica.com/
Website: http://www.northpacificproperties.com/
Email: roger@century21incostarica.com
