ISLAMABAD: JAN 22 (DNA) -: President Dr Arif Alvi conferred Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) upon Chief of the General Staff, Royal Saudi Armed Forces, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia General Fayiadh Bin Hamed Bin Ragad Al-Rowaily in a special Investiture ceremony held at Aiwan-e-Sadr, Islamabad on Tuesday.

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Zubair Mahmood Hayat, NI (M) and other senior officers were also present during the ceremony.

Later on, Chief of the General Staff, Royal Saudi Armed Forces also called on President Dr. Arif Alvi.  Speaking on the occasion, the President said that Pakistan attaches great importance to its unique and brotherly relations with Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which are based on mutual trust and wishes to expand cooperation in all fields. He expressed satisfaction at close defence cooperation between the two countries which has further scope for growth particularly in the field of defence production. He also highlighted the ever accelerating trade and investment relations between the both countries. He underlined that Pakistani expatriates are making tremendous contribution to the progress and development of Saudi Arabia and they can play an important role in implementation of Vision 2030 projects.

Chief of the General Staff, Royal Saudi Armed Forces, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia General Fayiadh Bin Hamed Bin Ragad Al-Rowaily thanked the President and the Government of Pakistan for this honour and hoped that bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries would further grow in future.