The Prime Minister's brief entourage comprised Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Senior Minister for Industries Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Barrister Masood Kausar and Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir. Talking to APP prior to his departure, the Prime Minister said the main objective of his visit was to pay Umrah.

He said during his stay, he would also have an audience with custodian of two Holy mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz and discuss ways to further strengthen bilateral ties.

He said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoy bilateral relations in diverse fields and Pakistani people hold the Saudi nation in high esteem. He said the 15lac Pakistani expatriates were highest in number in Saudi Arabia as compared to any other country in the world. The Prime Minister and his entourage are scheduled to pay Umrah in Makkah tonight.

The situation in the region and economic cooperation between the two countries is likely to be discussed during the talks with the Saudi King.

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011