ISLAMABAD - Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud arrived here Saturday on a three-day visit to Pakistan to discuss regional situation and to strengthen the brotherly relations between the two countries.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif received Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud as a 19-gun salute boomed to herald his arrival here at Noor Khan Airbase.
Federal Ministers, Ishaq Dar, Pervaiz Rashid, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, Zahid Hamid, Abdul Qadir Baloch, Ahsan Iqbal, Advisor to Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Rashad Mahmood, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Raheel Sharif, Chief of Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafique Butt and Chief of Naval Staff Muhammad Asif Sandila were present.
Ambassador of Saudi Arabia Dr Abdul Aziz Ibrahim Saleh Al-Ghadeer and Pakistan Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Naeem Khan were also present to receive the guest. Clad in traditional dresses, a young boy and girl presented bouquets to the dignitary.
A smartly turned out contingent of the three services presented a salute to the Saudi Crown Prince who inspected the guard of honour while the national anthems of the two countries were played.
The Crown Prince is accompanied by a high level delegation including Dr Mohammed bin Sulaiman Al-Jasser, Minister of Economy and Planning Dr Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr Abdulaziz bin Mohieddin Khoja, Saudi Minister for Culture and Information and Dr Nizar bin Obaid Madani, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, besides a large number of Saudi businessmen.
Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud had also visited Pakistan in 1998 as Governor of Riyadh.
During the visit, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud will hold talks with the President and the Prime Minister on bilateral and international matters of mutual interest.
The visit will give a new impetus to the existing fraternal bonds between the two countries. It will provide a good opportunity to explore ways and means for further strengthening cooperation in diverse areas of mutual interest particularly in expanding and enhancing investments and trade. In this context, the accompanying Saudi businessmen will meet their Pakistani counterpart.
The two sides will also discuss ways to increase export of Pakistani manpower to Saudi Arabia and to facilitate the Pakistani community residing in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There is a large Pakistani community of approximately 1.5 million in Saudi Arabia, which serves as a bridge between the two brotherly countries and plays a positive role in the development of Saudi Arabia as well as Pakistan’s economy through annual remittances of over four billion dollars.