King Abdullah received the envoys’ credentials at a palace ceremony attended by Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, members of the royal family as well as senior civil and military officials.
“First to present his credentials was Gambian Ambassador Omar Gibril Sallah,” said Alaudeen A. Alaskary, deputy minister for protocol affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Alaskary said: “King Abdullah welcomed all new ambassadors and wished them a comfortable stay in the Kingdom, their second home. Saudi Arabia looks forward to enhance cooperation and work closely with the envoys.”
Ambassadors of Jordan, Pakistan, India, Cote d’Ivoire, Bahrain, the UAE, Hungary, Philippines, Nepal, Germany, Australia, Belarus, Ecuador, Bissau Guinea, Afghanistan, Poland, Portugal, Belgium, Kenya, Maldives, Ethiopia, South Africa, Tajikistan, Bangladesh, Sweden and Chile presented their credentials to the king on Tuesday.
Speaking on behalf of the new ambassadors, Gambia’s Sallah said King Abdullah’s initiatives for national dialogue and interfaith dialogue as well as his support to the impoverished regions of the world are examples to be followed by people and nations. He said all ambassadors newly posted in their missions look forward to the guidance of the king.
“We seek the help and support of the Saudi government for further deepening cooperation between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia,” said Pakistani Ambassador Muhammad Naeem Khan after presenting his credentials. He said that he would continue efforts to cement bilateral cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Kenyan Ambassador Mohamud Ali Saleh said: “I look forward to working with the government and the people of Saudi Arabia to maintain the excellent relations existing between the two countries.” He added that he was impressed by the tremendous development that has taken place in Saudi Arabia in a short period of time.
“I was really excited to become an ambassador in a country like Saudi Arabia with which Nepal seeks cooperation in all sectors,” said Udaya Raj Pandey, Nepalese ambassador, who was 21st in the list to present his credentials. “I will continue building on the already existing bilateral cooperation,” he added. The group also included non-resident ambassadors from Guinea, Chile and Ecuador.
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