The very first visit of Shehbaz Sharif as Prime Minister concluded this weekend, keeping with the long-standing tradition of Pakistani leaders visiting Saudi Arabia as their first destination abroad, performing Umrah and paying their respects to the Saudi leadership.

Prime Minister Imran Khan visited China earlier this month to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics and held substantive talks on bilateral, regional and global issues with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang.  

The negative trends that have characterized the regional situation are likely to persist and amplify in the year ahead, multiplying Pakistan’s concerns in the domains of security and economy.