Daily Times

Prime Minister Imran Khan and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirate (UAE) Armed Forces Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed on Thursday held wide-ranging talks focusing on bilateral, regional and international issues.

The discussions continued over the luncheon, hosted by the prime minister in honour of the crown prince and his accompanying entourage. The crown prince, who was on a day-long visit, was accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising cabinet members and senior officials.

In a special gesture, the UAE crown prince was received by Prime Minister Imran Khan at the Nur Khan Airbase. Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed had earlier visited Pakistan in January 2019.

The prime minister expressed satisfaction at the frequent exchange of high-level visits between Pakistan and the UAE, and the steady development of cordial ties between the two fraternal countries. Underlining the strategic importance of the Pakistan-UAE special relationship, he stressed the imperative of deeper economic engagement.

The prime minister highlighted the economic turnaround in Pakistan and the growing opportunities for foreign investment as well as fruitful trade and commercial engagement with key partner countries. Welcoming the UAE’s interest in investing in myriad sectors in Pakistan, the prime minister assured maximum facilitation for the UAE investments.

Among others, the possibilities in the energy and tourism sectors were highlighted. Closer collaboration in the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector was also underlined.

The prime minister highlighted the positive contributions of more than 1.6 million expatriate Pakistani community, who consider the UAE as their second home.

Prime Minister Imran Khan also thanked the UAE leadership and its people for their commitment to Pakistan’s socio-economic development, focused in particular on health, education and youth.

He apprised Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed of India’s inhuman lockdown in the Indian-held Kashmir (IHK), continuing for over 150 days. He also highlighted India’s discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and their negative consequences.

The prime minister underscored the need for the world community to take urgent steps to address India’s state oppression in Kashmir, immediate removal of the continuing lockdown and other restrictions, avoidance of escalation of tensions on the Line of Control, and peaceful resolution of the dispute in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolutions.

The role of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in advancement of the Islamic Ummah’s causes was discussed. The prime minister also apprised the crown prince of Pakistan’s efforts and positive contribution to the Afghan peace and reconciliation process. He underlined that a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan was in the interest of Pakistan and the region.

The crown prince underlined the strategic importance of UAE-Pakistan relations, and extended cordial greetings for the brotherly people of Pakistan and good wishes for their accelerated development in the year 2020 and beyond. He also underlined the UAE’s support for peace and stability in South Asia and peaceful resolution of issues. He also appreciated Pakistan’s important role in the OIC.

The visit of the crown prince was the first by a foreign dignitary to Pakistan in 2020, and reflective of the special relations between Pakistan and the UAE, which continue to grow deeper with the passage of time. The two leaders reaffirmed their resolve to take these relations to a new level.