1. Home
  2. Middle East
  3. Saudi-Pakistani defense ties bolstered

Saudi-Pakistani defense ties bolstered

April 4, 2012

saudi_copy


London, April 4: British Prime Minister David Cameron held talks here yesterday with Defense Minister Prince Salman and discussed issues of mutual concern and ways of strengthening bilateral ties.


The meeting at No. 10 Downing Street was attended by British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond, Saudi Ambassador to UK Prince Muhammad bin Nawaf and State Minister Musaed Al-Aiban.


Prince Salman arrived here yesterday at the start of a several-day official visit to the United Kingdom at the invitation of his British counterpart Philip Hammond.


Prince Salman was seen off at Riyadh Air Base by Riyadh Gov. Prince Sattam, Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Deputy Defense Minister Khaled bin Sultan and Prince Sultan bin Salman, chairman of Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities.


Other officials who were present at the airport were Chief of Staff Gen. Hussein Al-Qubail, his deputy Gen. Abdul Aziz Al-Hussein as well as commanders of land, naval and air forces.


Before leaving Riyadh, Prince Salman met with Pakistan Army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and discussed prospects of expanding cooperation and other issues of mutual concern, the Saudi Press Agency said.


The meeting was attended by Prince Khaled bin Sultan, Al-Aiban and Gen. Al-Qubail.


Saudi Arabia and Pakistan pledged to enhance strategic relations in defense sector here yesterday. This was announced following the talks between Prince Salman and Kayani.


The talks focused on a range of subjects of common interests especially in the areas of military cooperation and joint military exercises. Both sides reiterated that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have a “unique” relationship that is “long-lasting and time-tested,” said Pakistan Ambassador Muhammed Naeem Khan after the talks.


The Saudi-Pakistani ties are “unmatched with the strongest bonds,” added Khan.


He said that “the two sides had vowed to enhance strategic relations and have agreed to increase joint exercises between the armed forces. In fact, detailed talks covered various aspects of combat capabilities as well, he noted.


Kayani expressed his gratitude to the Saudi government and people for the “exemplary support extended to Pakistan at all times.”


Khan said that the meeting with Prince Salman, which was also attended by Brigadier Hassan Jalil, also focused on new plans and policies.


Recently, a major Pak-Saudi exercise to help prepare troops for counter terrorism operations was organized in Pakistan, said the envoy.


Kiyani also called on Deputy Interior Minister Prince Mohammad bin Naif. Cooperation to counter terrorism and extremism figured at the talks.


Comments

Add new comment

About text formats
  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
January 15,2020

Asia, Jan 15: Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Wednesday said that killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani showed the ignorance and arrogance of the United States and asserted that Washington looks at things from their perspective and not keeping the interests of the region in mind."The US looks at things from their perspective, not from the perspective of this region. The killing of Qassem Soleimani shows ignorance and arrogance. 430 Indian cities saw protests against killing of Soleimani," Zarif said at an event.

Hitting out at US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, Zarif said that they were the only ones, along with the Islamic State (ISIS) who celebrated the death of Soleimani.

"Who is celebrating Soleimani's killing? President Trump, Pompeo and Daesh (Arabic name of ISIS). You wonder about strange bedfellows?" he said.

Tensions between the US and Iran soared dramatically earlier this month after Washington launched airstrikes at Baghdad International Airport, which killed Soleimani. Tehran retaliated by firing a volley of ballistic missiles at two military bases of US-led coalition forces in Iraq, leading to a strife in the region.

However, Zarif regretted the shooting down of the Ukrainian airline and said it happened because of "tension".

"Nine million people were out in the streets of Iran commemorating Soleimani. You cannot bring out so many people to protest. The shooting down of a plane was a mistake. 180 families are mourning the loss of their dear ones. It happened because of tension," he said.

Asked whether there a chance of a diplomatic solution to the ongoing crisis, Zarif ruled out negotiating with the US.

"Iran is interested in diplomacy. We are not interested in negotiating with the US. US did not keep its commitments under nuclear deal. We had a US deal and the US broke it. If we have a Trump deal, how long will it last?" he said.

Comments

Add new comment

About text formats
  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
Agencies
February 5,2020

Paris, Feb 5: Saudi Arabia has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu virus on a poultry farm, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Tuesday, February 4.

The outbreak, which occurred in the central Sudair region, killed 22,700 birds, the OIE said, citing a report from the Saudi agriculture ministry.

The other 385,300 birds in the flock were slaughtered, it said.

The case was the first outbreak of the H5N8 virus in Saudi Arabia since July 2018.

Comments

Add new comment

About text formats
  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 15,2020

Dubai, Apr 15: Saudi Arabia reported 493 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 5869, the Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday.

According to the ministry of health, the number of recoveries today are 42 cases, making total of recoveries in the kingdom 931. And 71 critical cases in intensive care.

The ministry also confirmed 6 deaths bringing the total number of deaths in the kingdom to 79.

Saudi Arabia imposed a 24-hour curfew and lockdown on the cities of Riyadh, Tabuk, Dammam, Dhahran and Hofuf and throughout the governorates of Jeddah, Taif, Qatif and Khobar. This week the curfew was extended until further notice.

Overall, Saudi Arabia has reported one of the lowest rates of infection in the region, with around 5,000 cases in a population of over 30 million. Mecca was one of the first Saudi cities to be placed under a full-day curfew, and authorities took unprecedented precautions, suspending religious tourism in February and closing mosques across the country in March.

Comments

Add new comment

About text formats
  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.