Islamabad: Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is going on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia, from March 4 to 6, on the invitation of King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, the foreign affairs ministry here announced on Tuesday.
This will be his first official visit to the kingdom since assuming the country’s top office in 2013.
Sharif will be accompanied by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief Minister of Punjab province Shahbaz Sharif and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Syed Tariq Fatemi.
During the visit he will hold talks with the King, perform Umrah and visit Madinah to offer prayers at Al Masjid Al Nabawi (the Prophet’s Mosque), the foreign ministry said in a statement.
“The official visit 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 relation,” it said.
“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 statement said.
Saudi Arabia also hosts more than 1.7 million Pakistanis, whose remittances contribute substantially to their home country’s economy and annual trade volume between the two countries exceeds US$4.5 billion (Dh16.5 billion), it added.
Last month, the Saudi embassy in Islamabad in a statement accused a section of the media of “propagating a false impression that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is funding the extremist mindset in Pakistan through its financial support for religious seminaries.”
The embassy said whenever any seminary, mosque or charity organisation requested the kingdom for financial assistance, the embassy refers the matter to the government of Pakistan through the ministry of foreign affairs.
Only when the ministry informs the embassy in writing that the financial assistance is in the interest of public welfare, is the assistance provided to the applicant, the embassy said, adding that the assistance “has always been beyond any sectarian considerations.”
The foreign affairs ministry, in response to the embassy statement, pointed out that only offers of economic assistance and project-based assistance by the kingdom are processed by the ministry in consultation with the relevant departments and agencies of the government
“However, funding by private individuals and organisations to private entities through informal channels, regardless of the source and country, are being brought under tighter scrutiny ... to choke off any possibility of financing for terrorists and terrorist organisations,” the ministry statement said.
