Saudi Arabia only provides economic assistance: FO

Foreign Affairs spokesman said any funding by private channels to be scrutinized under NAP

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said on Tuesday that Pakistan only receives economic assistance from the Kingdom and any ‘private entities’ funding extremist mindsets through informal channels are scrutinized under the National Action Plan.

The spokesperson words come as a strong denial to reports claiming that Saudi Arabia is bankrolling the ‘extremist mindset’ in Pakistan by lending a generous hand to religious seminaries.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been making important contribution to Pakistan’s economic development,” Aslam said. “Economic and project-based assistance by Saudi Arabia are processed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in consultation with the relevant departments and agencies of the government.”

Aslam stressed that “funding by private individuals and organisations to private entities through informal channels, regardless of the source and country, are being brought under tighter scrutiny in the National Action Plan against terrorism”

The ministry said that tighter scrutiny will choke off any possibility of financing for terrorists and terror organisations.

Chinese Foreign Minister’s visit

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to visit Pakistan on a two-day mission on the 12^th and 13^th of February, according to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement.

During the visit, the Chinese foreign minister will lead an eight-member delegation and hold delegation-level talks with Adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz. He is also going to call on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain. All aspects of the bilateral relations between the two countries will be discussed during the foreign minister’s tour, with a special focus on political, strategic and economic cooperation.

According to the statement, the foreign minister’s “visit is an opportunity for both sides to have a free and frank exchange of views on regional and global developments of mutual interest.”

“Pakistan attaches great importance to its comprehensive strategic partnership with China. Such high-level visits are a regular feature of the time-tested and unshakeable bonds of friendship between the governments and peoples of Pakistan and China,” the statement read.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad will also co-host the Launching Ceremony of Pakistan-China ‘Year of Friendly Exchanges.’