ISLAMABAD:
At home, the newly-elected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his government may be facing the question of legitimacy but many world capitals appear to have ignored those concerns as several leaders continued to send messages of felicitation to him on Monday.
Several world leaders and countries including Saudi Arabia, China, Turkey, the United States, the UK, Malaysia and others congratulated Shehbaz and expressed willingness to work with his government.
Turkish President Recep Tayab Erdogan, with whom the Sharif family has a long-standing relationship, was the first world leader to telephone Shehbaz over his election victory.
Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman joined other leaders to felicitate the new Pakistani premier. The de facto Saudi ruler, in a cable message, wished PM Shehbaz success, and the people of Pakistan steady progress and prosperity.
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Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have a long-standing strategic relationship and in recent years Riyadh on many occasions came to Islamabad’s rescue in the wake of a crippling economic crisis.
The key Arab country would remain crucial for the new government as it is grappling with a series of challenges including tackling the fragile economy.
President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon also congratulated PM Shehbaz, emphasising that through joint efforts, both countries would enhance and expand their long-term bilateral partnership.
“In felicitation message, he said that Tajikistan and Pakistan are linked by long traditions of friendship, mutual understanding, respect and trust,” according to the state-run Radio Pakistan.
He said that the multifaceted cooperation between the two countries, based on those good traditions, is constantly developing and enriched with new content.
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Meanwhile, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim telephoned and congratulated his newly-elected counterpart on taking oath of his office.
Ibrahim also expressed good wishes for PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif upon which PM Shehbaz thanked his Malaysian counterpart. The premier said that Pakistan and Malaysia have long-standing brotherly relations.
He expressed Pakistan’s desire to promote its trade and diplomatic relations with Malaysia. He also invited the Malaysian prime minister to visit Pakistan.
US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome also extended congratulations to PM Shehbaz on assumption of office.
In his message on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Blome said that his country was looking forward to working closely with the new government and people of Pakistan on mutual interests.
Similarly, Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas sent a message of congratulation to Shehbaz on assumption of office of the prime minister.
In his letter, the Palestinian President expressed his best wishes for the leadership of PM Shehbaz and the nation. “In his message, he said that Palestine and Pakistan are bound in a historical and strong bond.”
The Palestinian President acknowledged that Pakistan had always raised its voice for the rights and justice of the Palestinian people.
