COAS Bajwa arrives in Riyadh to meet Saudi army chief

RIYADH: Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Monday met the Saudi Army chief General Fayyad bin Hamid Al-Ruwaili, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defence Saudi Arabia.

“Gen Bajwa was received by Saudi Arabia’s Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces General Fayyad Al-Ruwaili,” the statement read.

Director-General Inter-Servies Intelligence Lt Gen. Faiz Hameed accompanied Gen Qamar Bajwa as well.

The army chief is accompanied by Director-General Inter-Servies Intelligence Lt Gen. Faiz Hameed. The statement said that during the meeting, “prospects for military cooperation and ways to support and boost it were reviewed, in addition to matters of common concern” were discussed.

Gen Bajwa in Riyadh to smooth ties between Riyadh, Islamabad

A leading English daily had reported that Gen Bajwa may also meet the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdul Aziz.

The sources had said that it was being hoped that the “recent misunderstanding” between the two strategic partners would subside as a result of the army chief’s upcoming visit.

The reference was to remarks made by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi expressing frustration with the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) for not taking a strong stance on Kashmir.

“Yes, he [Gen Bajwa] is travelling,” DG ISPR Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar confirmed to Reuters, saying that the visit was pre-planned and “primarily military affairs oriented.”

Pakistan has been asking the OIC, which is led by Saudi Arabia, to call a Council of Foreign Ministers meeting to discuss the Kashmir issue in light of India’s August 5 move.

The foreign minister was quoted by a private news channel a few days ago that Pakistan would have to move forward for the cause of Kashmir “with or without” Saudi Arabia.

Soon after the remarks, the government was criticised by opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, who termed FM Qureshi’s statement “highly unfortunate, irresponsible”.

“The cavalier attitude by this government is undermining Pakistan’s core relations with friendly countries,” Shehbaz had written in a tweet.