Zedan received a telephone call from a Saudi Arabian organization offering him an engineering position at a construction project in Saudi Arabia. The Ministry of Communications, an agency of the government, guaranteed payment to Zedan for any work he performed there, whether for the government or for a nonsovereign third party. After three years, Zedan left the country without being fully paid. After he returned to the United States, he filed an action in federal court seeking to enforce the ministry’s guarantee. The ministry argued that it was protected under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
a. Was Zedan’s recruitment in the United States a commercial activity as required by the act?
b. Did this action have a direct effect in the United States as required by the act? Explain.