Thank you crown prince! Thank you prime minister!

ISLAMABAD: Thank you Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for doing all this for Pakistan and its people.

Thank you, Prime Minister Imran Khan for providing this momentous opportunity of further cementing the relationship between the two brotherly Muslim countries -- Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Undoubtedly, the Saudi crown prince has won the hearts of the entire Pakistani nation with his spontaneous comment, “Consider me ambassador of Pakistan in Saudi Arabia”. “We cannot say no to Pakistan,” the crown prince had added in response to Prime Minister Imran request for release of Pakistani prisoners in Saudi jails.

Within 24 hours of his statement- “Consider me ambassador of Pakistan in Saudi Arabia”, “We cannot say no to Pakistan”- the Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in a video message gave the good news of the Saudi crown prince’s decision of releasing over 2000 Pakistani prisoners, who are presently languishing in Saudi jails.

Already the visa fee for Pakistanis has been drastically reduced by the Saudi government whereas during the two-day official visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Sulman to Pakistan, MoUs and agreements worth $20b of Saudi investment in Pakistan have also been signed. It is expected that the visit will also further the strategic and defence relations between the two countries.

In view of serious financial crunch being faced by the Pakistani economy and following the request of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Riyadh also provided $3 billion of soft loan to boost Islamabad’s foreign exchange reserves besides committing to supply oil worth $3 billion a year for three years.

Not only now but even before every time Pakistan found itself in any difficulty, Saudi Arabia helped it as a real brother. Pakistan has also been a trusted friend of Saudi Arabia and its cooperation with Riyadh in the areas of defence and security has always been acclaimed by the Saudi rulers. Because of the Holy cities of Makkah and Madina, Pakistan and its people have always showed special affection to Saudi Arabia and its people.

Pak-Saudi relations could be better described as “A friend in need is a friend indeed”. However, credit goes to Prime Minister Imran Khan for further cementing the relations between the brotherly countries. Without going into formalities and barely caring for certain diplomatic formalities and protocols, Prime Minister Imran Khan welcomed the crown prince in an informal fashion to achieve what was impossible to attain after prolonged diplomatic exchanges.

From the body language of the crown prince to his spontaneous comment- “Consider me ambassador of Pakistan in Saudi Arabia”, “We cannot say no to Pakistan”-, it was very clear that he was really impressed with the hospitality and welcome reception given to him by Pakistan and its Prime Minister Imran Khan.

It would have been better if the president and the prime minister had invited the leading opposition leaders in the formal receptions during the crown prince’s official visit to Pakistan and still the outcome of this high profile visit from Saudi Arabia has been exceptional.