Shehbaz meets Mohammed bin Salman to advance cooperation

RIYADH: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a meeting on Wednesday as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are looking forward to formalise cooperation in different fields.

#PICTURES: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh and holds an official reception ceremony in his honor pic.twitter.com/LfaGlKMTvc

— Saudi Gazette (@Saudi_Gazette) September 17, 2025

Earlier, F-15 fighter jets of the Royal Saudi Air Force escorted the plane carrying Shehbaz earlier in the day after it entered the airspace of Saudi Arabia as he reached Riyadh on a state visit which will produce concrete progress in strengthening in different fields.

The prime minister, accompanied by top cabinet members and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, is undertaking the visit at the invitation of the Saudi crown prince.

Meanwhile, the meeting focused on reviewing the entire spectrum of Pakistan-Saudi Arabia relations.

The two leaders exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest just days after their meeting in Doha, Qatar, where they attended the Arab-Islamic summit held in the wake of Doha attack.

Read more: Doha summit for reviewing diplomatic, economic ties with Israel

Given the alarming developments in Gaza amid the Israeli aggression and planned summit on two-state solution — a joint initiative of France and Saudi Arabia — later this week in New York, the visit has gained great significance.

Read more: France defends move to recognize Palestinian state, Gulf States welcome

‘The visit is expected to result in the formalisation of cooperation in diverse fields, reflecting the shared. commitment of both sides to further enhance and deepen their longstanding fraternal ties,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said earlier in a statement shared on X.

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Curtain Raiser: Prime Minister's Visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia https://t.co/OKTxY2oHQu
🔗⬇️ pic.twitter.com/3C1YiIkmfe

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) September 17, 2025

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Also on Wednesday, Saudi Arabia condemned “in the strongest terms” the Israeli ground operation in Gaza City, a day after Israel unleashed a long-threatened ground assault on the enclave.

The kingdom also urged members of the UN Security Council to act to halt what it described as Israel’s killing, starvation and forced displacement of Palestinians, the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement,

Israel on Tuesday started a ground offensive to seize control of Gaza’s main urban centre.

There has been a wave of criticism from countries around the region including Qatar, which has been hosting and mediating ceasefire talks.

Qatar described the Israeli ground offensive as a continuation of its ‘war of genocide’ against the Palestinians.

After a UN Commission of Inquiry concluded on Tuesday that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, its ambassador in Geneva, Daniel Meron, called the report “scandalous” and “fake”, saying it had been authored by “Hamas proxies”.

It’s a developing story. Details to follow.