PM Shehbaz departs for Saudi Arabia on 3-day visit
pPrime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has departed for Saudi Arabia on a three-day visit, the government said on Thursday./p pIn a post on X, the government said that the premier has left for the visit at the invitation of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman./p blockquote class"twitter-tweet" lang"en" a href"https://twitter.com/GovtofPakistan/status/2085308159196082319"/a /blockquote pHe will be accompanied by the Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, and Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi on the visit./p pPrime Minister and Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, who is currently in Saudi Arabia after concluding a visit to Jordan, will be part of the delegation as well./p pEarlier, FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi announced the visit in a weekly briefing./p pDuring the visit, the prime minister will meet the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and discussions will focus on consolidating the Pakistan-Saudi bilateral relationship and exchange views on areas of regional and international developments of mutual interests, he said./p pHe stressed that the visit marked Pakistans long-standing partnership with Saudi Arabia, which he said was anchored in decades of mutual trust, cooperation and brotherhood./p pAndrabi noted that while the visit was taking place amid heightened tensions in the Gulf, he said that it will carry immense significance beyond the immediate crisis and short-term considerations./p pHe added that the visit will further strengthen bilateral relations, deepen strategic cooperation, enhance coordination on regional and international issues of mutual interest and also reinforce multilateral cooperation./p pShortly after, an official statement regarding the visit was also issued./p blockquote class"twitter-tweet" lang"en" a href"https://twitter.com/ForeignOfficePk/status/2085257337460367712"/a /blockquote pThe premier had last a href"https://www.dawn.com/news/1991908"visited /aSaudi Arabia in April, meeting with the kingdoms top leadership./p pAs the Middle East conflict has expanded across new fronts, Saudi Arabia has a href"https://www.dawn.com/news/2019602/riyadh-unveils-maritime-alliance-as-war-spreads"unveiled plans /afor a multinational maritime defence coalition to protect shipping and energy supply routes in the Red Sea region. Fourteen countries, including Pakistan, have voiced support for the coalition./p pIn July, Pakistan also a href"https://www.dawn.com/news/2019605"endorsed /aa href"https://www.dawn.com/news/2019202"Saudi Arabias air strikes in Iraq/a as an exercise of its right to self-defence. The remarks came two days after Saudi Arabia and the US carried out coordinated strikes against installations of Iraqs Popular Mobilisation Units, accusing elements within the umbrella force of launching attacks on Saudi oil facilities./p pThe remarks followed Pakistans earlier a href"https://www.dawn.com/news/2017926"warning /aafter Yemens Houthi rebels announced a maritime blockade targeting shipping linked to Saudi Arabia. Islamabad had then described attacks on Pakistani maritime interests as a red line, warning that any hostile action against Pakistani-flagged vessels or commercial shipping would be treated as an attack on Pakistan./p pThe country also simultaneously reaffirmed its commitment to Saudi Arabias security and the uninterrupted flow of lawful maritime commerce through the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb./p pLast year, Islamabad and Riyadh a href"https://www.dawn.com/news/1942611"concluded /aa Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement, which became operational earlier this year as Pakistan simultaneously embarked on a diplomatic effort to mediate between Iran and the United States./p
Source: Dawn News
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