JEDDAH, July 28: Unanimity on all subjects was the hallmark of talks between President Pervez Musharraf and King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia here on Saturday afternoon.
The talks between the two leaders, held at the Royal Palace in this Red Sea port city, covered the entire gamut of Pak-Saudi relations, with emphasis on internal and external issues threatening the Ummah.
The president explained to King Abdullah the internal situation in Pakistan in the wake of the Lal Masjid operation. The growing US pressure on Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to ‘do more’ also came under discussion during the extended talks between the two leaders, insiders said.
Both sides felt the need to contain extremism within Muslim society. It was also decided to further strengthen cooperation between the two sides on terrorism-related issues.
The talks were aimed at forging a joint stand on the challenges confronting the Ummah, Pakistani officials said.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al Faisal and the Governor of Makkah, Khalid al Faisal, were also present during the talks.
President Musharraf stressed the need for enhancing economic ties between the two countries.
Some insiders said that President Musharraf and King Abdullah may also have broached upon the subject of reconciliation within Pakistan politics and the possibility of Saudi Arabia using its good offices for that purpose. Some sources claimed that Qatar-based Saifur Rahman, a Sharif confidant, had been striving to achieve the objective and had been making rounds of Jeddah and Riyadh.
There have been speculations in Jeddah that in the aftermath of Benazir–Musharraf meeting, a meeting between Musharraf and Shahbaz Sharif could not be written off.
Some source said that Shahbaz was booked on a flight to Jeddah, but the booking was cancelled – apparently in the wake of media focus on the issue.
President Pervez Musharraf and his delegation performed Umra in the early hours of Saturday. In the evening, the president and his entourage left for Madina.
