JEDDAH, 23 November 2003 — Pakistan’s Minister for Information and Media Development Shaikh Rashid Ahmad said yesterday Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoyed excellent relations, and the rousing reception given to Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, during his visit to Pakistan was a testimony to that.
Crown Prince Abdullah was welcomed by crowds of admirers lining the streets between Islamabad airport and the city and given standing ovation in the country’s assembly during his state visit in October.
Speaking to members of the Pakistani community here, Shaikh Rashid urged overseas Pakistanis to play their role in the development of their country and the Kingdom.
Earlier in the day, Shaikh Rashid met his Saudi counterpart, Culture and Information Minister Fouad Al-Farsy, and discussed cooperation between the two countries in print and electronic media.
Al-Farsy hailed the arrangements made by Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the media coverage of Prince Abdullah’s visit. Al-Farsy accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan in the near future.
Shaikh Rashid later told Pakistanis his country wanted better relations with its nuclear neighbor India without compromising on principles. He said he was surprised at the welcome he was given during his visit to Delhi’s Jama Masjid. A large number of people thronged the mosque when they learned that a Pakistani minister had come to pray. The people of the two countries were close but their leaders kept them apart for the sake of political expediency, Shaikh Rashid said.
The minister said Pakistan was now better off financially. “Our foreign exchange reserves are more than $10 billion. The major problems we face are law and order and unemployment,” he said.
The law and order problem was created by terror groups that the government has now banned, he added. Islamabad has recently banned four groups operating under new names to get around an earlier ban for involvement in terror acts.
Pakistan, he said, was in the front line in the war against terrorism.
He also assured his compatriots here that the government-opposition tussle over the Legal Framework Order will end soon.
