PM receives royal reception at Qatar stopover

Premier Imran met by his Qatari counterpart while returning home from a highly successful US trip

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday received a royal reception during his brief stopover in Doha on his way back home after concluding his maiden visit to the United States as premier, which is being hailed as ‘highly successful’ by foreign affairs experts.

وزیر اعظم عمران خان امریکہ کے دورے سے واپسی پر دوحہ (قطر ) پہنچ گئے ۔ وزیر اعظم کا دوحہ میں مختصر قیام ۔ قطری وزیر اعظم شیخ عبدالله بن نصر بن خلیفہ الثانی نے وزیر اعظم عمران خان اور پاکستانی وفد کا حمد انٹرنیشنل ائیر پورٹ دوحہ پر استقبال کیا ۔#WelcomeHomePMIK pic.twitter.com/9e9PInmW0E

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) July 24, 2019

Qatari Prime Minister Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani welcomed his Pakistani counterpart at Hamd International Airport.

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Qatar. During the premier's stopover in Doha, he was recieved by Prime Minister of Qatar Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani.#WelcomeHomePMIK pic.twitter.com/hN7aa7WuRv

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) July 24, 2019

PM’s Adviser on Commerce and Trade Razzaq Dawood, Special Assistant on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari and Secretary Foreign Affairs Sohail Mehmood also accompanied the premier.

After a brief meeting at the airport, the two sides also held detailed discussions at the Qatari premier's residence, where a banquet dinner was hosted in honour of Prime Minister Imran and his delegation.

Matters pertaining to improve bilateral ties and friendship between the two brotherly countries were discussed at the meeting.

The two sides reaffirmed the resolve to comprehensively upgrade bilateral relations in all fields including trade, investment, energy, aviation, agricultural, tourism, manpower and people to people contacts. The positive contribution of Pakistani community in Qatar was also lauded.

وزیر اعظم عمران خان اور قطری ہم منصب عبدالله بن نصر بن خلیفہ الثانی کی دوحہ، قطر میں قطری وزیراعظم کی رہائشگاہ پرملاقات ۔ ملاقات میں دونوں برادر ملکوں کی دیرینہ دوستی اور باہمی تعلقات کو مزید مضبوط بنانے کے لیۓ مختلف امور پر بات چیت۔#WelcomeHomePMIK pic.twitter.com/m4YJyRvRhz

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) July 24, 2019

On the occasion, Prime Minister Imran recalled the recent visit of the  Qatar Amir to Pakistan and thanked his government for its economic support.

Later, Prime Minister Imran Khan left Doha for Islamabad.

During his stay in Washington, the premier held talks with US President Donald Trump, interacted with Congressional leaders and addressed a think tank.

PM Imran concludes US trip

Before the visit, everyone was expecting the issue of Afghanistan to dominate the discussions. It certainly did, but only a few had expected that Kashmir and Pakistan-India relationship would steal the limelight.

The biggest success of the trip was that not only President Trump praised Pakistan’s efforts for facilitating the Afghan peace talks, but he also offered to mediate on the Kashmir dispute. What came as a shock to everyone was Trump’s revelation that Modi himself had recently requested him to mediate between Pakistan and India over the Kashmir issue.

PM Imran pulls off a PR coup in US

His statement stirred uproar in India, which was quick to reject Trump’s claim that Modi had requested mediation. The controversy echoed in the Indian parliament where the opposition sought a personal clarification from Modi despite the Indian external affairs ministry’s denial.

It is undoubtedly a PR victory for Pakistan because India, under the Modi regime, has been working to isolate Pakistan globally for quite some time. The Indian media proudly claims that the Trump administration favours New Delhi over Islamabad.