The ambassador said that Pakistan regards its relations with Saudi Arabia highly and the recent visits of Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have further cemented existing fraternal relations between the two countries.

He said the leaders of both countries were working toward stability in the region. He lauded the services provided to pilgrims by the Saudi leadership, and also appreciated the expansion of the Grand Mosque project.

The ambassador underlined the need for enhanced cooperation between the media of the two countries to project the true image of Islam as well as to counter anti-Muslim propaganda. He conveyed the greetings of the Pakistan Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan to the Saudi minister and reiterated her invitation to Khoja to visit Pakistan, which he warmly accepted.

The Saudi minister, while welcoming the ambassador, said the Kingdom considered Pakistan as a close fraternal country and wished it to be prosperous and developed. He assured the ambassador of his full cooperation to strengthen relations between the two countries.