NA speaker for boosting Pak-Saudi Arabia parliamentary cooperation

ISLAMABAD: Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Monday called for Parliamentary diplomacy between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan should be given a new fillip through regular exchanges of delegations and diversification of bilateral relations.

The Chairman of the Shura Council of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Dr. Abdullah Bin Mohammad Bin Ibrahim Al-Sheikh called on the Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq in Parliament House along with the delegation on Monday.During the meeting, they exchanged cordial talks and discussed a number of issues of common interest between the two brotherly countries and ways of strengthening relations.

Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoy close fraternal relations pointing out that the two countries stood by each other in testing times. “Close and frequent contacts at the highest level have been the hallmark of these relations,” he added. The Speaker said that close cooperation between the National Assembly and the Saudi Shura Council would add substance to bilateral relations.

He said that Pakistan wanted stability and peace in the region because it was necessary for prosperity and development. “The menace of extremism and terrorism has adversely affected the region’s progress and needed collective efforts to overcome it,” he added.

The Speaker National Assembly appreciated Saudi Arabia’s role for peace and stability in the region. He further emphasised that Parliamentary diplomacy between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan should be given a new fillip through regular exchanges of delegations and diversification of bilateral relations.

The Speaker also informed the Saudi counterpart regarding Pakistan’s commitment towards attaining sustainable goals with establishment of a dedicated secretariat in Parliament House for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the solar power project initiative that enabled Pakistan’s Parliament as first in the world to go green.

The Chairman of the Shura Council of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Dr. Abdullah Bin Mohammad Bin Ibrahim Al-Sheikh termed relations between the two sides as historic and unique.

He said that Pakistan was the closest friend and ally to the Kingdom. He said that existing relations would be strengthened in days to come and cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan would be further diversified for mutual benefit of both the nations.

He said that his government wanted Pakistan to prosper and develop.  He stressed the need for spreading the true message of Islam for curbing extremism and terrorism.He was confident that fraternal relations between both the countries would further strengthen by frequent interaction between the parliamentarians of both the countries.

Endorsing Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq’s emphasis on bilateral cooperation for tackling regional challenges, he remarked that both the countries had great responsibility in addressing regional challenges.

He also reiterated his commitment for expansion and diversification of trade and economic relations.He congratulated the Speaker for enabling Pakistan’s Parliament as first in the world to go green. Later on the Saudi delegation visited the Green Parliament Solar Power Project.  The Chairman of the Shura Council also signed the visitor’s book along with his comments.