EDITORIAL: The historic visit of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia to Pakistan, which successfully concluded yesterday, has further cemented the ties of brotherhood that bind the two countries.

... His Majesty`s six-day stay in this country afforded a welcome opportunity to the Government and the people of Pakistan to express their profound sense of gratitude to the great King and people of Saudi Arabia for their wholehearted support to us in our hour of trial. ...

The joint communiqué issued at the end of the historic visit ... inter alia underlined a basic assumption of President Ayub`s foreign policy that `cooperation based on the enduring bonds of faith, history and culture would be fully consistent with cooperation on regional and universal basis.

...His Majesty King Faisal and President Ayub have expressed their common view that `solidarity of the Muslim and Arab countries on the basis of mutual respect and common interests is good for all.

`This solidarity constitutes a strong force for a just world order and would help in providing a better life for all nations and, in particular, would promote a complementary economic unity of the Muslim world` ...Thus, the visit of King Faisal, to this country has been highly successful in bringing Pakistan and Saudi Arabia closer together, in initiating measures for developing cooperation between the countries in economic, social, cultural and other fields and in strengthening the move to unite the world of Islam.

It has been a momentous event that may produce far-reaching consequences for the good of the Muslims of the world in particular and all peoples of the world in general.

The objective of Islamic unity, as President Ayub has rightly said in an interview with a Radio Mecca correspondent, `should be pursued and pursued with patience till the doubts and prejudices that stand in the way disappeared`. ...