Saudi Crown Prince meets Rishi Sunak during G20 summit

Mohammed bin Salman and UK Prime Minister discuss energy markets and Iran

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday met with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali.

During the meeting, they reviewed bilateral ties and discussed regional and international developments, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The leaders committed to looking for opportunities to deepen investment ties in strategic industries and Mr Sunak said he hopes to continue working with Saudi Arabia to stabilise energy markets.

The meeting was attended by Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of State, Cabinet Member and National Security Adviser Musaed Al Aiban, Minister of Commerce and Acting Minister of Information Majid Al Qasabi.

A Downing Street representative said the leaders discussed the importance of continued UK-Saudi cooperation in the face of regional security threats and international economic instability.

Mr Sunak said he hoped the UK and Saudi Arabia could continue to work together to stabilise energy markets.

The leaders also shared their concern over threats to peace and security in the Middle East, including Iran’s destabilising activity in the region.

Mr Sunak said he looked forward to “continuing to strengthen the UK-Saudi relationship, noting the importance of further progress on social reforms, including on women’s rights and freedoms in the kingdom”.

The Saudi Crown Prince, attending his first G20 summit, also met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, French President Emmanuel Macron and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Saudi Arabia hosted the G20 in Riyadh in December 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The trip forms part of a tour to a number of Asian countries to “strengthen relations between the kingdom and friendly countries”, the royal court said on Monday.