Pakistan’s Tough Balancing Game in the Gulf

On February 17-18, 2019, Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman made his first two-day state visit to Pakistan as part of a  major regional tour after Khashoggi’s  murder had blighted  the  shine  of the  Kingdom’s  de  facto  ruler  in  the  West  as  a reformer  and modernizer. Rolling  out a red  carpet  for the official guest,  the district administration of the capital (Islamabad) declared a holiday on  18 February, 2019  to mitigate the public’s inconvenience. Such  pompous gestures allude to the deep significance Pakistan attaches to  its  relationship  with  Saudi  Arabia, especially  at  a time  when  Pakistan  faces hard economic  and  political  challenges.  For  Islamabad, Riyadh  has  long  been a generous provider of financial assistance in economic emergencies….Read More