The United Nations Assistant Secretary-General Derek Plumbly on Tuesday applauded the efforts made by the Kingdom to support the Syrian people.

Plumbly, who is also the special coordinator of the UN Secretary-General for Lebanon, is on a visit to the Kingdom.

“He warmly welcomed the very generous pledge of assistance from the Kingdom,” a UN statement issued on Tuesday said.

The appreciation came during the UN envoy’s meeting with Saed Alorabi Alharthi, adviser to the Ministry of Interior, where Plumbly expressed his gratitude to the Kingdom for extending full assistance and providing various forms of aid to Syrian refugees.

Official sources here said that they also discussed mechanisms to strengthen cooperation between the campaign launched by the Kingdom to support the people affected by the civil war in Syria and the UN during the meeting.

Accompanied by his delegation, Plumbly reached the Saudi capital for talks on Monday.

The statement said: “Plumbly met with senior Saudi officials during his visit, including the second deputy prime minister and the vice minister of foreign affairs.”

The UN diplomat discussed regional and International issues of common concern when he met with Prince Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, deputy minister of Foreign Affairs.

He also discussed the support agenda for Lebanon and the region ahead of the conference on Syrian refugees, which is to be held in Kuwait on Jan. 15, the statement added.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on Monday invited Syrian and international participants of the Geneva conference on Syria, which aims to bring two broadly representative and credible delegations of the Syrian Government and the opposition to the negotiation table to end the conflict and launch a political transition process through the full implementation of the Geneva Communiqué of June 30, 2012.

He also asserted that the UN and its diplomatic partners seek peace in the Middle East and that the world body is determined to provide maximum support in reaching comprehensive peace in the region.

A seasoned diplomat from the UK, Plumbly held important assignments in the foreign and Commonwealth office dealing with the Middle East region and his main task at the UN’s Beirut-based political office in Lebanon, UNSCOL, is to help implement a 2006 Security Council resolution which ended that year’s conflict with Israel.