Saudi foreign minister Jubeir to meet Swaraj in India

Saudi State Minister for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir will arrive in India on Monday for a brief visit during which he will hold talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Jubeir's nearly four-and-a-half-hour visit to India comes days after his trip to Islamabad.

The Saudi minister met Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday in Islamabad, and delivered a "special message" from Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, according to Pakistani media reports. His visit to Islamabad took place amid global efforts to de-escalate tension between India and Pakistan triggered by the Pulwama attack and subsequent aerial strike by India on a training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror outfit in Balakot on February 26.

Pakistan retaliated the strike next day by unsuccessfully attempting to target Indian military installations. The JeM had claimed responsibility for the Pulwama attack.

In Pakistan, Jubeir also held talks with Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. Countries like the US, the UK, China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE were involved in easing tensions between India and Pakistan.

Jubeir's visit comes after the Crown Prince's stand-alone visits to India and Pakistan soon after the Pulwama terror attack.

(With inputs from agencies.)