Saudi, UAE foreign ministers to visit Pakistan tomorrow

Adel al-Jubeir will meet PM Imran, FM Qureshi and COAS Gen Bajwa on daylong visit

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Adel bin Ahmed al-Jubeir is scheduled to arrive in Pakistan on a one-day visit on Wednesday [tomorrow].

Reports suggest the Saudi minister will hold meetings with Prime Minister Imran Khan, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Matters related to Pakistan and Saudi Arabia's bilateral ties and regional developments will be discussed.

The announcement of the Saudi foreign minister's visit comes after his meeting with Pakistan’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Raja Ali Ejaz in Riyadh this past Sunday.

The agenda of the wide-ranging meeting included a review of bilateral relations and discussions on matters of common concern. The regional situation in South Asia in the wake of India's illegal annexation of occupied Kashmir was also part of the discussions.

PM Imran, Saudi crown prince discuss IoK situation

Al-Jubeir earlier paid a daylong visit to Islamabad in March as part of Riyadh’s efforts to seek de-escalation in tensions between Pakistan and India.

He had met PM Imran, FM Qureshi and army chief General Bajwa to convey an ‘important message’ from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman to Pakistan’s civil and military leadership.

Also on Tuesday, PM Imran Khan held a telephonic conversation with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and apprised the royal on the current situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK).

The contact between Islamabad and Riyadh comes at a time when the lockdown in occupied Kashmir nears a month after India’s illegal and unilateral August 5 move.

PM Imran has made contact with MBS multiple times since then and called the Saudi crown prince last week too, after US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France.

The meeting saw Trump, more or less, backtrack on his earlier offer to mediate between Pakistan and India on Kashmir.

According to sources in the federal government, Pakistan is in contact through diplomatic and backdoor channels with a number of Islamic countries as part of its efforts to garner support on the Kashmir crisis and to force the Indian government to lift the curfew and information blockade in the occupied valley.

Emirati foreign minister to arrive in Pakistan tomorrow

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan is scheduled to arrive in Islamabad on Wednesday. He will hold meetings with top civil and military leadership of Pakistan.