NEW YORK: Saudi Arabia’s minister of foreign affairs, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, held talks with his Danish counterpart, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, on the sidelines of the 78th UN General Assembly, which is taking place in New York.
During their meeting, the prince praised moves by Denmark’s government to draft proposed legislation designed to prevent insults or abuse directed toward religious symbols and beliefs, the Kingdom’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday. It follows several recent incidents in the country during which copies of the Qur’an were burned or damaged, or threats to do so were made.
“This measure is intended to prevent infringement on the Holy Qur’an and religious symbols under the pretext of freedom of expression and opinion,” the ministry said.
The ministers also discussed ways in which the relationship and cooperation between their countries might be enhanced and developed in various fields, and the latest international developments of mutual interest.
Prince Faisal held separate meetings with the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Jeyhun Bayramov, Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Christophe Lutundula, on the sidelines of the UN event, during which they reviewed bilateral relationships and ways to enhance and develop them.
He also held talks with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, Prime Minister of Antigua Berbuda Gaston Browne, his Djiboutian counterpart Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, Filipino counterpart Enrique Manalo, and Dominican counterpart Roberto Alvarez.
The Kingdom’s permanent representative to the UN, Abdulaziz Al-Wasel, and the director of the Foreign Minister’s Office, Abdurrahman Al-Dawood, were also present at the meetings.
