Grand gesture: Saudi Arabia gifts 200 tons of dates to Pakistan

Deputy Head of Mission Saudi Arabia formally handed over the consignment on behalf of the Kingdom to the Cabinet.

ISLAMABAD: In an unprecedented move, the government of Saudi Arabia gifted 200 tonnes of dates to Pakistan on Wednesday.

According to an official release, the deputy head of mission Saudi Arabia Embassy in Islamabad Jassim Mohammad Khalid Al-Khaldi formally handed over the consignment on behalf of the Kingdom to the Cabinet Division. Senior officials of the Foreign Office were also present at the time.

Director General ERC Captain Muhammad Aftab thanked Al-Khalidi on behalf of the government for the dates and expressed gratitude for the rather grand gesture of friendship.

Last month, it was revealed that the Kingdom had lent $1.5 bn to Pakistan to share up its reserves.

Previosuly, Pakistan had sought Riyadh’s help to shore up its foreign exchange reserves and meet debt-service obligations and undertake large energy and infrastructure projects, Pakistani officials told Reuters.