Saudi crown prince holds calls with Russian president, Pakistan PM

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made a phone call on Thursday to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
At the beginning of the call, Putin thanked the crown prince “for his active and distinguished contribution to the success of the prisoner exchange process.”
Prince Mohammed affirmed the Kingdom’s readiness to exert all efforts and support to help reach a political solution to the crisis.
Putin noted the Kingdom’s accession to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as a dialogue partner, stressing the members’ aspiration for the Kingdom’s active contribution to the organization’s work.
During the call, they discussed aspects of cooperation between the two countries and ways to enhance them in various fields.
The crown prince held a successful mediation session on Wednesday to release 10 prisoners from various countries as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier on Thursday, Prince Mohammed received a phone call from Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, where he expressed his country’s congratulations on the occasion of the Saudi National Day and his wishes for further progress and prosperity for the Kingdom.
Sharif also thanked the Kingdom’s leadership for its continuous support to Pakistan and its people in providing relief to the flood victims.
During the call, they reviewed aspects of cooperation between the two countries and ways to develop them.