ISLAMABAD, Oct 18: Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz arrived here on Saturday to a grand reception reflecting the depth of relations between the two countries.

He was received at the Islamabad airport by President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali.

The reception was a deviation from the norm, and so was the warm welcome outside the airport and along the entire route, where thousands of people poured out onto the streets to greet the Crown Prince.

Nineteen guns boomed as Prince Abdullah alighted from the aircraft where a red carpet reception awaited him. President Musharraf and Prime Minister Jamali received the guest and a young boy clad in sherwani suit presented bouquet to the Crown Prince. Two F-16s followed by two Mirage aircraft flew past as the national anthems of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were played.

Prince Abdullah reviewed the guard of honour of a contingent of the three services of armed forces.

A long reception line comprising the Senate chairman, National Assembly speaker, provincial governors, chief ministers, services chiefs, officials of the Saudi embassy, etc., greeted the Crown Prince and members of his entourage.

The flags of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia fluttered in light breeze at the airport building which was decorated with colourful banners, buntings and flower arrangements.

The motorcade of the Crown Prince, escorted by the military police, was showered with rose petals by children as it came out of the airport building. Folk dancers, scouts, girl guides and general public waved the flags of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

The atmosphere was festive as thousands lined up along the route from the airport through the Islamabad Highway, Faisal Avenue and Jinnah Avenue up to the President House.

The Islamabad Highway gives a crisp view of Shah Faisal Mosque nestled in the Margalla hills, a living symbol of the Pakistani-Saudi friendship. The motorcade also passed by the Pak-Saudi Tower, another symbol of economic cooperation between the two countries. Huge portraits of the Crown Prince were placed at major intersections.

Dancers, representing the culture of four provinces, dotted the entire route. —APP