EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi is proving to be a blessing in disguise for cash-strapped Pakistani PM Imran Khan. Khan’s blessing is also likely to offer Saudi Arabia geopolitical advantage.
Pakistani PM Imran Khan struck gold on his second visit to the Saudi kingdom since coming to office in August.
He was rewarded for having attended Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman’s investors’ conference in Riyadh, a showcase dubbed Davos in the Desert. The event was shunned by numerous CEOs of Western financial institutions, tech entrepreneurs, and media moguls as well as senior Western government officials because of the Khashoggi affair.
In talks with King Salman and the crown prince, Khan managed to secure a promise from Saudi Arabia to deposit $3 billion in Pakistan’s central bank as balance of payments support and to defer up to $3 billion in payments for oil imports for a year.
via The Khashoggi Crisis: A Blessing in Disguise for Pakistan’s
