Saudi crown prince congratulates Asif Ali Zardari on turning into Pakistani president

Asif Ali Zardari used to be sworn in on Sunday to serve as president for a 2nd term, a month after Pakistan’s contentious election

During his preceding tenure, Zardari ushered in constitutional reforms to make certain Pakistan’s provinces achieve larger autonomy

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday congratulated President Asif Ali Zardari after he used to be sworn in as Pakistan’s 14th president, as the South Asian u . s . a . navigates a trio of political, monetary and political crises.

Veteran baby-kisser and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Zardari took oath on Sunday to serve as the country’s president for any other term. Zardari secured 411 votes in the oblique electoral contest held in Pakistan’s parliament and provincial assemblies on Saturday. His opponent who was once supported through the Imran Khan-backed Sunni Ittehad Council, Mahmood Khan Achakzai, ought to solely bag 181 votes.

“The custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his highness, the crown prince, congratulates Asif Ali Zardari on the event of his election and swearing-in as the president of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) wrote on social media platform X on Sunday.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia revel in robust trade, protection and brotherly relations. The Kingdom is domestic to over 2.7 million Pakistani expatriates, serving as the pinnacle vacation spot for remittances for the cash-strapped South Asian country.

Felicitations for the newly elected Pakistani president additionally got here from Chinese President Xi Jinping and Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan Dr. Reza Amiri Moghadam on Sunday.

During his final tenure as president from 2008 to 2013, Zardari ushered in constitutional reforms, which includes the 18th amendment, to make certain larger autonomy to provinces, and rolled returned presidential powers.

On Friday, his predecessor Alvi used to be accorded a farewell defend of honor. Alvi’s five-year term ended in September closing year, however in Pakistan, a president may additionally proceed to continue to be in workplace constitutionally till his successor is elected.

The tenure of Alvi, who took oath on Sept. 9, 2018 after ex-PM Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) celebration got here to strength in election held the equal year, used to be marked with the aid of political instability and civil-military tensions, and noticed the ouster of Khan in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April 2022.

Besides political instability, an financial disaster gripped Pakistan at some stage in this period, with the South Asian us of a barely heading off a default in June closing 12 months via securing a $3 billion bailout deal from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).