Maldives President Muizzu to visit Pakistan from Oct 20-22: FO

Maldives’ President Dr Mohamed Muizzu will undertake a three-day state visit to Pakistan from Oct 20-22 at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Sunday. President Muizzu will be accompanied by First Lady Sajidha Mohamed and a “high-level delegation comprising cabinet ministers and senior officials”, according to a statement issued by FO. During the visit, Muizzu will meet his Pakistani counterpart, President Asif Ali Zardari, who will host a state banquet in his honour, FO said. He will also hold “restricted and delegation-level” talks with PM Shehbaz, it added.

During the talks, the two leaders “will review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations and explore avenues for further strengthening cooperation in trade, investment, health, education, tourism, agriculture, defence, maritime security, climate change and people-to-people exchanges”. They will also exchange views on regional and international developments of mutual interest, FO added. A Pakistan-Maldives Business Forum will also be held during the visit to promote interaction between the two countries’ business communities and explore opportunities for trade and investment, according to FO. “A number of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) covering diverse areas of bilateral cooperation are expected to be signed during the visit,” the statement added. FO highlighted that the visit marks the first by a Maldivian president to Pakistan in 11 years. It will take place as the two…