Saudi Arabia's strategic ties with Pakistan stressed 

(MENAFN - Arab News) A road map of collaboration and cooperation to further strengthen the strategic relations between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan figured prominently in the talks between Crown Prince Salman, deputy premier and defense minister, and Hina Rabbani Khar, Pakistani foreign minister, here yesterday.

The talks were followed by another round of consultations between Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal and the visiting Pakistani minister at the Foreign Ministry, yesterday.

In an interview with Arab News following the talks, Khar said that the talks with Saudi leadership "focused mainly on the roadmap and on a range of bilateral and regional issues including Syria and Afghanistan."

Khar, wearing a black abaya, spoke very candidly on regional and international subjects besides giving an overview of the progressively growing Riyadh-Islamabad relations with special reference to the Pakistan's presidency of the 15-member UN Security Council that began yesterday.

The talks with Prince Salman were attended by several high-ranking Saudi and Pakistani officials. Prominent among them were Prince Mohammed bin Salman, special advisor and crown prince's office supervisor; Nizar Obaid Madani, minister of state for foreign affairs; Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Abdulaziz Ibrahim Al-Ghadeer and Pakistani Ambassador Mohammed Naeem Khan. Khar conveyed to the crown prince the greetings of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and the Pakistani people on the recovery and the good health of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.

Referring to the topics that figured during the talks with Crown Prince Salman and Prince Saud, Khar said that "all issues bilateral as well as regional of mutual concerns figured during our discussions. Saudi Arabia has unique position in the Islamic world as well as on global level."

"I have intensive discussions on the roadmap that will set out a new vision of relationship between the two countries," said the foreign minister, adding that the roadmap was agreed upon during the visit of Prince Abdulaziz Bin Abdullah to Pakistan a few months back.

She further said that both sides have agreed that peace and stability within Afghanistan is not only important to Pakistan but also to the entire region and to the world at large. She briefed Saudi officials about the measures being taken by Pakistan for peace, progress and stability in the region and especially Pakistan's role in finding peaceful settlement of Afghan issue in accordance with the aspirations of the Afghan people.

Asked about priorities and agenda of Pakistan, which assumed presidency of the UN Security Council yesterday, the Pakistani foreign minister said it is for the first time that Pakistan has assumed its rotational office of the UN Security Council Presidency during the present two-year term. During Pakistan's presidency, Pakistani premier and Foreign Minister Khar will attend and chair the sessions on peacekeeping and counter-terrorism respectively.

She said that Pakistan, which was elected last year as a non-permanent member of the 15-member UN Security Council, will launch the UN discussions on peacekeeping, the biggest and the most prominent area of work of the organization and one of the most important tools at the disposal of the Security Council in the maintenance of international peace and security. "Many people don't know that Pakistan has contributed to the UN peacekeeping mission", she noted.

In the past 52 years, Pakistan has sent 144,711 troops to 23 countries and 41 missions. "Many Pakistanis have sacrificed their lives while battling to ensure peace and security in different war-torn nations, especially in Africa," said the Pakistani foreign minister. In fact, more than 132 Pakistani peacekeepers had laid down their lives in the cause of international peace during the missions. Terrorism, by which Pakistan has also been suffering, will be another major topic to be taken up by UNSC, she added.

On the question of a reported meeting in Islamabad that was convened to discuss the possibility of granting most favored nation (MFN) status to India and the shift in Pakistani policy towards New Delhi as reported by several media outlets recently, she said that "the two sides have made substantial progress in different areas including trade." "Nevertheless, the Kashmir dispute still remains the core issue," said Khar, while advocating for the inclusion of Kashmiris in the negotiation process.

Khar, who will wrap up her two-day visit to Riyadh, will leave for Islamabad today. Prince Saud hosted a lunch for the visiting Pakistani foreign minister and the accompanying delegation at the Foreign Ministry, here yesterday.