ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is paying a three-day official visit to Saudi Arabia from Wednesday on the invitation of the Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, the Foreign Office said on Tuesday.
It will be Nawaz’s first official visit to the Kingdom since assuming the office of the Prime Minister of Pakistan in 2013.
During his visit, the prime minister will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including the Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi.
The prime minister will hold talks with the Saudi King, perform Umrah and visit Madinah to offer prayers at the Masjid-e-Nabvi (Peace Be Upon Him) during his visit.
“Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are tied in close fraternal bonds of shared faith and values. Being the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, the King of Saudi Arabia has a special place in the hearts of every Pakistani,” the Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said in a statement.
The FO spokesperson said that the visit of the prime minister to Saudi Arabia will provide an opportunity to the leadership of the two countries to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern in the global and regional context and further strengthen our close bilateral relations.