Saudi Minister Adel al-Jubeir discusses Pak-India tension with Shah Mehmood Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir arrived in Pakistan today (Thursday) for a one-day visit to help ease tensions between Delhi and Islamabad.

He held meetings with Prime Minister Imran Khan and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. They discussed bilateral issues.

He came to Pakistan on the directives of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to discuss the Pakistan-India situation. When making the announcement regarding the minister’s visit, Qureshi had said that the Saudi envoy is coming to Pakistan with a special message from Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

The Saudi State Minister for Foreign Affairs called on PM Khan at the Prime Minister House. He applauded the peace initiative of Pakistan in reducing the ongoing Pakistan-India tension and discussed matters of regional and bilateral interest.

FM Qureshi, Advisor on Commerce Abdul Razzaq Dawood, and Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua were also present during the meeting.

Earlier in the day, Qureshi had told SAMAA TV that Saudi Arabia is eager to play its part in establishing peace in the region. The Saudi minister assured Qureshi of Saudi Arabia’s complete support towards solving the issues with India in a peaceful manner.

Tensions between India and Pakistan have escalated since the February 14 Pulwama attack, in which 40 Indian soldiers were killed. On February 27, Pakistan shot down two Indian fighter jets that entered Pakistani airspace. One pilot was captured and released on February 28 as a “gesture of peace”.

Pakistan has repeatedly called for India to deescalate the situation and come sit at the negotiation table instead of engaging in more aggression.