Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud accompanied by a Saudi delegation will visit Pakistan next month to meet Pakistani leadership and discuss topics pertaining to bilateral issues, and the latest updates on the Middle East as well as the surrounding region.
The kingdom’s Foreign Minister will be joined by Saudi businessmen and companies. Abdulaziz bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister will also be present during the visit, revealed sources.
According to sources, the visit will also deliberate the establishment of a Saudi oil refinery in Pakistan.
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The Saudi Foreign Minister will meet Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, President Arif Alvi, and Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Earlier this year, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia’s relationship hit a rough patch when Shah Mehmood Qureshi publicly called out Saudi Arabia’s lack of support to Pakistan regarding the Kashmir issue.
The Pakistani Foreign Minister, during a television talk show, stated that the country would be “compelled to call a meeting of the Islamic countries that are ready to stand with us on the issue of Kashmir.” His statement was viewed by Saudi Arabia as an indirect threat to create a new side against the otherwise Saudi dominated Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
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Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s remarks met with consequences as not long after, the kingdom in return requested a repayment of a billion-dollar load given to Pakistan that had already been renegotiated six months prior to this incident. Not only that, a deferred oil payments scheme, which was included in the mentioned loan was also refused to be renewed by Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia denied any changes to the visa policy for Pakistani citizens traveling to the Kingdom.
While addressing the media Saudi envoy, Nawaful Malki, said that citizens from around the world, who did not have lawful documents were being forced to leave Saudi Arabia. He clarified that Pakistani’s were not being targeted specifically.
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The fear of Pakistani citizens being deported comes after the UAE’s version of the ‘Muslim ban’ on 13 countries, in which Pakistan has also been enlisted. Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Somalia have also been included in the Arab Muslim ban. The UAE has stopped the issuance of new visit visas for the citizens of the 13 countries, as a measure to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.