Duterte invites Saudi’s king, crown prince to visit PHL

President Rodrigo Duterte has invited Saudi Arabia’s royals to visit the Philippines as the two nations marked the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year.

Duterte’s invitation to Saudi’s King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was relayed by Chief of Presidential Protocol and Presidential Assistant on Foreign Affairs Robert Borje during his courtesy call on Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud in Riyadh on Monday.

The President met the king and the crown prince during his state visit to the oil-rich kingdom in April 2017.

Borje also conveyed Duterte’s gratitude to Saudi Arabia for ensuring the welfare of Filipinos working in the kingdom.

Prince Faisal, meanwhile, expressed the kingdom’s willingness to contribute to the development of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Borje also raised the issue of Saudi-born Filipino minors awaiting repatriation to the Philippines.

The Saudi foreign minister replied that his government will try to accelerate the process so that the Filipino minors could be sent home.

Borje, also the President’s Special Envoy to Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, was sent by Duterte to North Africa and the Middle East to assess the situation of Filipinos in those regions. — MDM, GMA News