India-Saudi relations can help
India has committed to Saudi Arabia that it will create conditions necessary for resumption of comprehensive dialogue between India and Pakistan. This comes hours after the Saudi Crown Prince arrived in India and held a series of meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other officials.
While concluding the visit to India, Saudi Crown prince Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a joint statement wherein both agreed on the need for creation of conditions necessary for resumption of the comprehensive dialogue between India and Pakistan.
The two leaders also condemned in the strongest terms the recent terrorist attack on Indian security forces in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir.
Affirming that the menace of ‘extremism and terrorism’ threatens all nations and societies, the two sides rejected any attempt to link this universal phenomenon to any particular race, religion or culture.
Both sides called on all states to reject the use of terrorism against other countries, dismantle terrorism infrastructures where they happen to exist and to cut off any kind of support and financing to the terrorists perpetrating terrorism from all territories against other states and bring perpetrators of acts of terrorism to justice.
The Saudi Crown Prince’s visit comes at a time when he during his visit to Pakistan announced a massive bailout plan and investments in the country. This means that the Saudi is investing in Pakistan and the ties between the two nations have been further strengthened.
However, no country plays zero sum games in foreign policy, especially where powerful players are involved. India has always kept its relationship with Saudi Arabia separate from that country’s relations with Pakistan. This will make a lot of difference when it comes to shaping new relations in the south Asian region.
The visit by Crown Prince Mohammed to the Asian region is an effort by him to repair his image that has been dented badly by the gruesome October 2018 murder of the dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdom’s consulate in Ankara.
The Prince, who has been directly linked to the murder, is currently not welcome in the west and his trip to the south Asian region is expected to him getting more involved in the regions politics and play a constructive role for his country as well.
Given the success the visit of the Saudi Prince has brought in terms of India-Saudi relations, his role in coming days will be quite involving and in the long run helpful for both the south Asian nations, including Pakistan.
KV Network
