Saudi Crown Prince MBS expected to arrive within days to seal investment deals

ISLAMABAD: Against a flurry of activities between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to boost trade ties, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is expected to arrive in Pakistan this month to conclude deals being negotiated between Islamabad and Riyadh. According to Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, dates for the visit had not been communicated to Pakistan, but media reports claimed that the visit was likely on May 10-15. “The crown prince had accepted Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s invitation. The visit is on the cards, but no dates have been communicated to us as yet,” FM Dar said at a briefing on his participation in the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Saudi Arabia and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation meetings in Gambia. He explained that the initial understanding was for discussions to commence at the government level after MBS committed to invest $5 billion in Pakistan, followed by subsequent talks between business executives. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud led a ministerial delegation to Islamabad on April 15-16. Later, FM Dar and PM Shehbaz held meetings with Saudi leadership on the sidelines of the WEF and over the past few days a delegation of Saudi businessmen led by the Saudi deputy minister for investment visited Islamabad.