Shehbaz likely to visit KSA, Egypt next month

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is likely to undertake a visit to Saudi Arabia next week at the invitation of his Saudi counterpart Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman (MBS).

The prime minister will reach Riyadh on Wednesday to attend the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Besides, the prime minister will hold a meeting with the Crown Prince, who is also the prime minister of the Kingdom. It would be Shehbaz’s third meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince in about six weeks. Diplomatic sources are attaching added significance to the sojourn in the backdrop of recent developments where Saudi Arabia came under discussion due to an irresponsible statement of the spouse of PTI founder Imran Khan.

The government vehemently criticised it, terming it a conspiracy to harm the fraternal ties between the two countries.

During the visit, Shehbaz will also have meetings with the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other world leaders attending the event in Riyadh.

Deputy Prime Minister Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, who is leaving for Iran’s historic city Mashhad to attend an important conference of the Economic Cooperation Organisation on Monday, would also join the prime minister’s entourage. The conference is the global voice for land and one of the three major UN treaties known as the Rio Conventions, alongside climate and biodiversity. Coinciding with the 30th anniversary of UNCCD, COP16 will be the largest UN land conference to date, and the first UNCCD COP held in the Middle East and North Africa region, which knows first-hand the impacts of desertification, land degradation and drought. The COP16 is poised to be a game-changer, marking a renewed global commitment to accelerate investment and action to restore land and boost drought resilience for the benefit of people and the planet.

Sources have also indicated that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will undertake his maiden visit to Egypt in the same month where he will represent Pakistan in Developing-8 (D-8) 11th summit. It will take place on Dec 19th. The summit will provide an opportunity for the prime minister to have meetings with Turkish President Tayyip Recep Erdogan, Bangladesh Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus, host President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and heads of delegations from Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia and Nigeria.