ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Saturday that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Pakistan in February 2019 had ushered in a new era of deeper engagement across economic, investment, energy, security and people-to-people domains, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad said in a press statement.
Khan met with the Saudi crown prince during his day-long visit to Riyadh to discuss bilateral matters.
“The two leaders expressed satisfaction at the ongoing bilateral cooperation between the two countries,” the statement added. “It was noted that the establishment of the Saudi-Pakistan Supreme Coordination Council (SPSCC) had provided a firm institutional mechanism to advance bilateral cooperation in diverse fields in a robust manner. The two sides hoped to further advance this process during the second meeting of the SPSCC expected to take place early next year.”
The prime minister also apprised the crown prince “of the latest situation in Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir, marked by continuous lockdown and other restrictions since 5 August 2019,” the statement continued, and “thanked Saudi Arabia for its traditional support to the Kashmir cause.”
Earlier, accompanied by Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood, Khan arrived in Madinah and prayed at the Prophet’s mosque, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). Khan sent his salutations upon the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), before traveling onwards to Riyadh to meet with the Kingdom’s top leadership.
In February this year, Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman visited Pakistan for the first time in a much-celebrated tour, with Prime Minister Khan personally receiving and driving him from the airport after his arrival.
In an earlier handout issued on Friday, Pakistan’s foreign ministry described Khan’s visit as “part of the regular exchanges between the leadership of Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
“The consultations will cover bilateral matters and recent developments in the regional context,” the statement added.
In October, Khan visited Tehran before heading to Riyadh to focus on “peace and security in the region.” He also reiterated his offer to mediate during his visit to the 74th United Nations General Assembly summit this September, to ease the regional situation in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa also visited Abu Dhabi, the military’s spokesperson Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor said in a Twitter post on Saturday.
The army chief met with Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan, who is the Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, the tweet said and added that regional security and matters of mutual interest were discussed.
Khan’s trip follows Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s visit earlier this week to Riyadh where Qureshi held a meeting with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Farhan bin Abdullah, to review bilateral relations between the two countries and discuss the latest regional and international developments.
On Friday, during the weekly press briefing, foreign office spokesman, Dr. Mohammad Faisal, said in response to questions about Prime Minister Imran Khan’s upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia: “You have witnessed the high frequency of leadership level exchanges, especially since last August. The Prime Minister has undertaken at least three visits to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since May this year.”
“High-level political exchanges between the two countries are the hallmark of this brotherly relationship. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have a brotherly relationship rooted in history and based on mutual trust and understanding,” the foreign office spokesman said.
As a special gesture, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman accompanied the prime minister after the bilateral meeting to see him off at the Riyadh International Airport, said the ministry’s handout.
