Prime Minister Imran Khan has cancelled his scheduled visit to Malaysia, it emerged on Tuesday. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office of Malaysia on Tuesday, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad received a call from Imran Khan on Monday. “Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed his regrets for not being able to attend the Kuala Lumpur Summit,” said the statement. “Dr Mahathir appreciates Prime Minister Imran Khan’s call to inform of his inability to attend the summit where the Pakistani leader was expected to speak and share his thoughts on the state of affairs of the Islamic world,” the statement read.
“Dr Mahathir would also like to correct some misinformation which quoted Dr Mahathir as saying that the KL Summit was intended to be a platform to replace the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation,” added the statement.
According to reports, no official from Pakistan will attend the summit as Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has also cancelled his visit to Malaysia following Prime Minister Imran Khan’s similar decision.
The development comes after a meeting between PM Imran and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman in Riyadh on Saturday, during which matters related to bilateral relations were discussed.
Foreign Office Spokesperson Dr Faisal during his weekly briefing had said the summit would provide Pakistan an opportunity to explain views and find solutions to the challenges facing the Muslim world particularly governance, development, terrorism, and Islamophobia.
The summit was finalised during a trilateral meeting involving Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia in September in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session. In November, Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir had extended an invitation to PM Imran through Deputy Foreign Minister Marzuki Bin Haji Yahya. Notable leaders expected to attend the summit include Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim Hamad Al Thani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. According to media reports, Saudi Arabia has not been extended an invitation to attend the summit starting Wednesday.
