Pak PM, army chief witness military exercise in Saudi Arabia

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif along with the top Saudi leadership witnessed the concluding ceremony of the 'North Thunder' military exercise in the northern region of Saudi Arabia on Thursday.

"Premier and army chief with Saudi leadership and other dignitaries on site of the North Thunder final manoeuvres," the Director General of military's media wing, ISPR, tweeted.

Sharif arrived on a three-day visit to Riyadh yesterday to witness the military exercises as well as hold regional and bilateral talks of mutual interest.

Sharif was accompanied General Sharif and Special Assistant to the premier on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi.

Upon their arrival, Sharif and his officials were received by Prince Muhammad bin Salman and other high-ranking officials.

A dinner was also hosted by King Salman bin Abdul Aziz al Saud last night.

Meanwhile, a number of other leaders also witnessed the ongoing military exercise and its closing ceremony.

Troops from 21 countries, including Pakistan, participated in the exercise.

The main aim of the exercise is to improve training to counter- threats posed by terrorist groups.

During the visit, Pakistan will offer to expand its cooperation with Saudis and its support for the for the 34-nation coalition of Islamic countries cobbled together by Saudi Arabia to fight terrorism, reports The Express Tribune.