Ambassador Barrie Delivers Letters of Goodwill and Solidarity to the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia
Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, His Excellency Mohammed S. Barrie, on Thursday, 5 November, delivered letters from His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio to the Saudi Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Waleed bin Abdulkarim Al-Khereiji.
The letters are for onward transmission to the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.
Ambassador Barrie conveyed the President’s kind greetings, together with a goodwill message of solidarity from the Government and People of Sierra Leone, to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and to the Crown Prince.
During the meeting, Ambassador Barrie raised four main points:
- Deepening bilateral ties
He highlighted the State visit of His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio and issues relating to deepening bilateral ties between Sierra Leone and the Kingdom, with a focus on socio-economic cooperation and collaboration.
- Religious tolerance and Hajj
He spoke about Sierra Leone’s religious tolerance, and the need for the Kingdom to support for sustaining and strengthening Hajj and pilgrim participation from Sierra Leone. He noted that out of a population of 8.5 million, 80% are Muslims.
- Support on security
The Ambassador conveyed President Bio’s support to Saudi Arabia on security matters, and Sierra Leone’s solidarity with the Kingdom in condemning the recent aggression and terrorist attacks at King Khalid International Airport and other parts of the Kingdom.
- Defence pact and Military Attaché
He also requested the establishment of a defence/military pact agreement between the two countries, and the deployment of a Military Attaché from Sierra Leone to the Kingdom.
‘Your Excellency, I bring you a message of solidarity from His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone regarding the recent attacks against the sovereignty of this Kingdom,’ Ambassador Barrie said. ‘And to re-emphasise the President’s and Sierra Leone’s solidarity with the Kingdom in condemning the terrorist attacks.’
Ambassador Barrie added that President Bio would like to hold telephone discussions with the Crown Prince on global security, cooperation and issues of mutual interest. He noted that President Bio served as President of the United Nations Security Council during Sierra Leone’s tenure as a non-permanent member. He has also served as Co-Chair of specific UN initiatives, including the High-Level Replenishment Conference for the UN Peacebuilding Fund, alongside other global leaders, and as Coordinator of the African Union Committee of Ten (C-10) advocating reform of the UN Security Council. He is also the immediate former Chairman of ECOWAS.
In response, the Saudi Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Waleed Al-Khereiji, thanked Ambassador Barrie for the visit and for delivering President Bio’s goodwill message. He assured him that the letters would be conveyed to the Royal Court through the appropriate channels.
On behalf of the Kingdom, he commended the Government and people of Sierra Leone for condemning the terror attacks in the Kingdom, and for President Bio’s message of solidarity. He also praised Ambassador Barrie’s diplomatic efforts in the Kingdom, saying he admired his work in deepening bilateral ties between the two countries. He assured the Ambassador that Saudi Arabia is ready to collaborate with Sierra Leone in areas of economic cooperation on issues of mutual interest.
Ambassador Barrie was accompanied by the Diplomatic Attaché, Dr Ahmad Wurie Bah, and the Information Attaché, Alhaji Abubakarr Bah.
