Riyadh, June 12, 2022, SPA – Deputy Speaker of the Shura Council Dr. Mishal bin Fahm Al-Sulami today at the headquarters of the council in Riyadh met with President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Duarte Pacheco and his accompanying delegation as part of the official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Dr. Al-Sulami commended the deep relations between the Shura Council and the IPU, stressing that this visit is part of efforts to enhance communication, cooperation and coordination and exchanging views between the two sides on several issues and unifying parliamentarian efforts to become more effective in enhancing international peace and security. He noted that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through Saudi Green Initiative and Middle East Green Initiative, which have been announced by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, aim at reducing carbon emissions, exchanging expertise, transferring knowledge among nations, and planting 50 billion trees in the Middle East, including 10 billion trees in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He also said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in its war against terrorism has established the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition, which attracted more than 40 Arab and Islamic countries so far. For his part, Pacheco praised the role of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in supporting international peace and security, commending the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's unaltered stance in supporting peace and its efforts in hosting Yemenis and the relief and humanitarian assistance it offers to the Yemeni people in their country. He also praised the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's model in enhance integrity and anti-corruption, expressing his welcome and support to the Middle East Green Initiative that was announced by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, for its being a qualitative initiative that seeks to improve the quality of life, protect the environment and address negative climate changes. During the meeting, a briefing was delivered on the work mechanisms of the Shura Council and its committees, in addition to ensuring that the work of the council did not stop during the COVID-19 pandemic, where the two sides also reviewed issues of mutual interest at the parliamentarian level between the Shura Council and IPU, the importance of enhancing cooperation opportunities, and benefiting from training expertise, experiments and programs. --SPA 19:49 LOCAL TIME 16:49 GMT 0024 www.spa.gov.sa/w1745536