PM confident MBS Pakistan visit to promote bilateral ties

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday, expressed confidence that the Saudi leader’s upcoming visit to Pakistan would promote bilateral cooperation.

“Looking forward to the upcoming visit of the crown prince to Pakistan. The prime minister said that he was confident that this visit would promote bilateral cooperation in all areas of mutual interest,” the PM Office said in a statement following the meeting.

The meeting held on the sidelines of the Conference of Parties (COP 27) in Sharm El-Sheikh reviewed the bilateral relations with a view to further enhancing the ongoing cooperation in various fields.

“Both sides expressed determination to further strengthen the multilateral partnership between the two brotherly countries,” the statement added. Referring to their recent meeting in Riyadh, the prime minister and the crown prince expressed satisfaction at the growing high-level ties.

The prime minister also met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on the sidelines of Climate Implementation Summit at COP 27. Chancellor Scholz evinced keen interest in Pakistan’s reconstruction and rehabilitation plans in the wake of the devastating floods, and assured the prime minister of Germany’s continued support.

Separately, the prime minister had a meeting with his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Støre on the sidelines of the summit. Also Shehbaz had a meeting with Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte.