ISLAMABAD (Agencies): Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) has postponed his much-anticipated visit to Pakistan for unspecified reasons.
The visit, which was expected to secure further investments and agreements between the two allies, was originally scheduled for May 19.
According to Mumtaz Zehra Baloch, the spokesperson for the Pakistani Foreign Office, the details of the future visit will be made public as soon as a schedule is worked out between the two nations. Baloch expressed confidence that the visit would take place soon.
This visit was set to be the first by the Saudi Crown Prince to the South Asian nation in five years, since February 2019 during the rule of former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Over the past five weeks, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has met with bin Salman twice.
Islamabad has long awaited the visit by the Saudi Crown Prince, with the event expected to bring lucrative investments into Pakistani industries and fields, as well as significant bilateral agreements advancing trade and defence cooperation.
This comes at a time when Pakistan continues to undergo an economic crisis, leaving it searching for ways to alleviate its financial woes.