PM Mohammad Shehbaz Sharif was indeed quite active both on the internal as well as on the external fronts. On the internal front, he was holding meetings, ascertaining the problems by the people at large and the sorts of challenges faced by the country and taking appropriate measures for resolving these challenges and providing relief to the people within the available resources. On the external front, he was frequently visiting friendly countries to further strengthen the bilateral relations as well as seeking investment, mutual trade and launching of joint business in different sectors to further stabilize the struggling national economy instead of asking for aid. In February, the PM paid quite hectic but fruitful and productive visits to the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan and back home welcomed the UAE Crown Prince. Just before the nation celebrated Pakistan Day, the PM paid a four days long official visit to Saudi Arabia. This was his 8th visit to Saudi Arabia during his first and ongoing second tenure so far. On the whole, he has so far undertaken 44 foreign visits to 16 countries. Saudi Arabia is not only our brotherly country but also the centre of our religious beliefs. Saudi Arabia has always supported Pakistan and its people in every difficult time and situation. No words are strong enough to describe the most warm brotherly relations between the two countries. During his visit, the PM held important deliberations with Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman and discussed enhancing the mutual cooperation in economic, trade, investment, energy and defense sectors. On his part, the Saudi Crown Prince duly acknowledged significant contributions of large number of Pakistanis working in the Kingdom in different fields and making their quite appreciable contributions to the economies of the host country and also to their motherland through back home remittances to their families. He also agreed to enhance measures to further enhance the measures for facilitating their welfare. About 2.7 million Pakistanis were living and working in Saudi Arabia, which quite obviously makes one of the largest migrant communities in the kingdom. Afterwards the PM described his meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince as quite productive saying that the discussions were held in a conducive brotherly atmosphere for further strengthening the bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. in trade, investment, energy and security. The PM availed the opportunity and conveyed his sincere best wishes to the Kingdom’s leadership and reaffirmed his country’s commitment to continue facilitating Saudi investors, duly highlighted Pakistan’s strategic position and invest-friendly policies, emphatically stating Pakistan’s vast potential in energy, infrastructure, agriculture and technology and invited the Saudi businessmen to explore the available vast opportunities in different sectors under the umbrella of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). During his meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince, the PM was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister/ Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Punjab Chief Minister/his niece Maryam Nawaz and Army Chief General Syed Asim Munir. But somehow they preferred to remain silent spectators making no contributions to the deliberations. The PM also held a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Investment Sheikh Khaled bin Abdul Aziz Al Faleh who has visited Pakistan more than once during the last year. The Saudi Minister expressed his country’s interest in further deepening economic ties with Pakistan.The PM also held a meeting with the Head of the Joint Task Force for Economic Engagement Muhammad Al Tuwaijri. On the occasion, the discussion focused on further strengthening economic cooperation, and expanding launching of mutually beneficial initiatives in the key sectors. The meeting between the Saudi Crown Prince and the PM in Jeddah can easily be described as yet another evidence of Pakistan’s desire to further broaden and expand all encompassing ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and quite welcome and appreciable commitment of the Saudi leadership to the progress and prosperity of Pakistan. Needless to mention here that the PM and those who accompanied him had also visited Madina Munawara, offered Nawafils at Masjid-e-Nabawi and paid their respects to the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) and also performed Umrah back in Makkah prior to their return home after a quite successful visit to Saudi Arabia more than one way. The PM’s visit to the KSA was surely in continuation of his strenuous efforts by his government to further bolstering, strengthening and promoting the economic ties with the important partners and attracting their investment in different sectors in Pakistan’s economy to further consolidate and maintain its upward trajectory to say the least. More about Pakistan’s enviable most warm brotherly relations with Saudi Arabia and its leadership in detail some other time, please.