Pakistan proud of its brotherly ties with Saudi Arabia: Asad Qaiser

ISLAMABAD: Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser said on Thursday that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoyed long term brotherly relations, which were based upon strong foundation of common faith, brotherhood culture and history.

He was talking to a parliamentary delegation of Saudi Arabia, led by Chairman of Shura Council of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Dr. Abdullah Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Sheikh here at Parliament House,a press release said.

He said that both the brotherly countries always stood with each other in difficult times and their people had great respect and affection for each other.

He said both the countries had always supported each other’s stance on regional and international forums adding that Pakistan was proud of its unique friendship with Saudi Arabia.

Stressing the need for close cooperation between the parliaments of both the countries, the Speaker said that regular exchanges of parliamentary delegation would provide opportunities to parliamentarians of the two countries to learn from each other’s experiences. He said that Parliament of Pakistan was committed to strengthening bilateral relations and Pak-Saudi Arab Friendship Group had been constituted in the National Assembly of Pakistan to further enhance the cooperation between the two parliaments.

Emphasizing the need for close collaboration between both the nations for regional peace and prosperity, he said that unity and close cooperation among the Muslim countries was imperative to overcome the challenges being faced by the Muslim Ummah. He appreciated the role of Saudi Arabia for promoting unity among the ranks of Muslim Ummah and resolving the problems being faced by the Muslim world.

Chairman of Shura Council of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia said that Pakistan was Saudi Arabia’s sincere friend and it gave immense importance to its brotherly relations with Pakistan. He said that Saudi Arabia wanted to further expand the existing relations through enhanced parliamentary and economic relations. He said that regular interaction at parliamentary and government level would promote harmony and better understanding between both the nations. He reiterated the firms resolve of Saudi Arabia to continue its pivotal role to address the problems of Muslim Ummah all over the world.

Dr Abdullah Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Sheikh assured the Speaker of all-out support of his government to Pakistan in diverse fields and agreed with the proposal of Asad Qaiser for promotion of bilateral trade and parliamentary relations. He also invited Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser to visit Saudi Arabia.

Deputy Speaker National Assembly Qasim Khan Suri, Convener Pak-Saudi Friendship Group Muhammad Ibrahim Khan, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan, Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs Andleeb Abbas and Ambassador of Saudi Arabia in Pakistan  Nawaf bin Saeed Al-Malki were also present on the occasion.