Saudi Foreign Minister to arrive in Pakistan today

Saudi Arabia's newly-appointed Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud will pay a visit to Pakistan on Thursday, Pakistan's Foreign Office confirmed on Wednesday.

Prince Faisal's maiden visit to the country has come days after Prime Minister Imran Khan pulled out of a key summit of Muslim nations held in Malaysia last week.

During the visit, the Saudi Foreign Minister will hold a meeting with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi and call on Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Foreign Office said in a statement, as cited by Dawn.

"This would be his maiden visit to Pakistan, during which the exchange of views would cover bilateral matters and regional issues of mutual interest," the statement read. "Frequent high-level visits are a key feature of the relationship and serve to further deepen and broaden mutual collaboration."

Pakistan had decided to stay away from the Kuala Lumpur summit of some 20 Muslim countries reportedly due to pressure exerted by Riyadh, given that the summit could lead to the setting up of an organisation parallel to the existing Saudi-dominated Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.