Pakistan will be very important country in future, says Saudi Crown Prince in Islamabad

Islamabad, Feb 18: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) on Sunday reached Pakistan for a two-day visit and praised the host nation lavishly. He said Saudi Arabia was looking for a leader like the current prime minister, Imran Khan, to forge partnership with Pakistan in various area.

He also expressed a bog hope over Pakistan's economic future and even told Khan to consider himself Pakistan's ambassador in Saudi. Referring to Khan's request of looking after poor Pakistani labourers in the West Asian kingdom state, MBS even said "We cannot say no to Pakistan... whatever we can do, we will deliver that".

Khan, keeping up his tradition of driving foreign dignitaries himself like he did to Abu Dhabi crown prince and deputy supreme commander of the UAE military, drove MBS to the PM House.

The royal visit was delayed by a day in the wake of the deadly attack on Indian CRPF jawans in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district on February 14 that resulted in deaths of over 40 personnel. The diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan plummeted following this terror attack.

Addressing a reception dinner at the PM House hours after reaching Pakistan, MBS called Pakistan a "dear country" to all Saudis and that the two nations "have walked together in tough and good times".

He also said Pakistan has a great future in store under a "great leadership", also noting that the country's GDP grew by five per cent last year.

"We believe that Pakistan is going to be a very, very important country in the coming future and we want to be sure we are part of that," MBS said, Dawn reported.

On the occasion, PM Khan invited the Saudis to avail opportunities from the much talked-about China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Pakistan's close links with Beijing.

Saudi crown prince conferred Pakistan's highest civilian award

The Saudi crown prince, who recently found himself at the centre of massive controversy over the gruesome death of senior Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey, was also conferred Pakistan's highest civilian award Nishan-e-Pakistan, by Pakistani President Arif Alvi in Islamabad.