Pakistan premier kicks off Saudi Arabia visit

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif began a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday by performing Umrah in the holy city of Makkah, his office said.

Sharif arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday for talks focused on bilateral cooperation and regional developments.

He was received at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah by Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz, deputy governor of the Makkah region.

Sharif is accompanied by Field Marshal and Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, and other senior officials.

He is scheduled to hold talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation, as well as regional and international developments.

The visit comes as Islamabad continues mediation efforts between Washington and Tehran.

In June, Qatar joined Pakistan in mediating the talks between the US and Iran, leading to the signing of a memorandum of understanding on June 18 and the launch of negotiations toward a final agreement.

The negotiations later stalled over disagreements related to maritime security and freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, although officials from Iran, Oman, and the US have recently signaled progress toward resolving the remaining issues.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is also scheduled to pay a one-day working visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday, according to Türkiye's Communications Director Burhanettin Duran.

During the visit, Erdogan is expected to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Sharif.

No further details about the agenda of the meetings were immediately available.

The visit comes a week after Pakistan joined a new Saudi-led Red Sea naval coalition, aimed at securing the waters from attacks on shipping by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia inked a Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement in September last year.