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By Anzal Amin
ISLAMABAD: Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was conferred with the King Abdulaziz Medal for making “significant contributions in defence cooperation” between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, the Inter-Services Public Relations said in a statement on Sunday.
The army chief visited Saudi Arabia on an official tour, ISPR said. During the visit, Gen Bajwa called on Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also the kingdom’s first deputy prime minister and defence minister and General Fayyadh Bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili, Chief of General Staff (CGS) of the Saudi Armed Forces at Jeddah, Sunday.
During the meetings, matters of mutual interest, bilateral defence and security cooperation and regional peace and stability were discussed.
The army chief said that Pakistan “values its historical and brotherly relations with the kingdom and acknowledges its unique place in the Islamic world”.
Both sides agreed upon enhancing defence cooperation in the fields of joint training, air defence, counter-terrorism and communication and information domain.
“They also agreed to further enhance cordial relations and deep spirit of brotherhood into enduring strategic partnership, being vital players in the region with significant responsibility towards unity of Muslim Ummah,” ISPR said. Shortly afterwards, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the army chief for receiving the honour.
“Heartiest congratulations to Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on conferment of King Abdulaziz Medal for his contributions to strengthening defence ties between our two brotherly countries. It is a great honour for the people and the armed forces of Pakistan,” he said in a tweet. He followed up his tweet with another one, in which he said Pakistan considers the security of Saudi Arabia “as our own and are completely resolved to further cementing our multifaceted bilateral relationship including excellent defence cooperation”.
