Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have underlined the importance of dialogue between Islamabad and New Delhi to resolve their “outstanding issues”, especially the Kashmir issue.

This was stated in a joint statement issued a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi de-facto ruler Prince Mohammed bin Salman held an official meeting on April 7 at Al-Safa Palace in Mecca.

Their discussions centred on fortifying the fraternal relations between the two nations and exploring avenues for enhanced collaboration across various sectors, according to the joint statement.

They also discussed the Kashmir issue, the statement mentioned.

“The two sides stressed the importance of dialogue between Pakistan and India to resolve the outstanding issues between the two countries, especially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to ensure peace and stability in the region,” it read.

New Delhi’s long-held position has been that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan and there is no question of any mediation or intervention by any third party.

India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir “was, is and shall forever” remain an integral part of the country. India has said it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an environment free of terror, hostility, and violence.

The joint statement also said that emphasis was placed on the Gulf Kingdom’s supportive role in Pakistan’s economy and the mutual desire to strengthen trade and investment ties.

“Both parties affirmed their commitment to expediting the first wave of investment package worth $ 5 billion which was discussed previously,” it read.

The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest, including the worrying situation in Gaza, and urged for international efforts to halt Israeli military operations in Gaza and, mitigate humanitarian impact.

“They discussed the need for advancing the peace process in accordance with relevant resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly as well as the Arab Peace Initiative aimed at finding a just and comprehensive solution, for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” according to the statement.

Prime Minister Sharif invited Bin Salman to undertake an official visit to Pakistan, which was accepted by the Crown Prince.

Sharif accompanied a high-level delegation to the Kingdom on Saturday on his maiden foreign trip to perform Umrah and meet the leadership of Saudi Arabia.

Separately, Radio Pakistan reported that Prime Minister Sharif and the Saudi Crown Prince reaffirmed their common resolve to further strengthen bilateral ties between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Both leaders appreciated the upward trajectory of longstanding fraternal relations between the two countries.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Millions of people across parts of Mexico, Canada, and the United States watched the rare total solar eclipse on Monday. The path of totality, a tiny area where the Moon completely obscures the Sun, crossed across cities and sent the United States into a frenzy.

NASA has shared the captivating live stream on its official broadcast channel on YouTube to witness the solar eclipse. For the first time in nearly a century, the western and northern regions of New York State saw a total eclipse.

Ever seen a total solar #eclipse from space?

Here is our astronauts’ view from the @Space_Station pic.twitter.com/2VrZ3Y1Fqz

— NASA (@NASA) April 8, 2024

The Mexican beachside resort town of Mazatlan was the first major viewing spot in North America. The partial eclipse began in southern Texas near Eagle Pass on the southern border with Mexico, marking the start of the eclipse in the United States.

The total solar eclipse of 2024 was the historic celestial event because it won’t be visible across the contiguous US again until August 2044 and an annular eclipse — which happens when the moon can’t completely block the sun– won’t appear across this part of the world again until 2046.

Earlier, CNN reported, Mexico’s Pacific coast is the first point of totality on the path, expected at 11:07 am local time (2:07 pm ET), and the eclipse is expected to end on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland at 5:16 pm local time (3:46 pm ET).

Emphasising safety while watching the total solar eclipse, earlier NASA shared a post on X, stating, “We want you to watch the total solar #eclipse. We just don’t want it to be the last thing you see.”
NASA stressed that it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing.

The total solar #eclipse is now sweeping across Indianapolis.

This is the first time in more than 800 years that the city is experiencing this celestial event! pic.twitter.com/jZuKx4nUAb

— NASA (@NASA) April 8, 2024

“Except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse, when the Moon completely blocks the Sun’s bright face, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing,” it said.

It further stated that viewing any part of the bright Sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or a telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics will instantly cause severe eye injury.

“When watching the partial phases of the solar eclipse directly with your eyes, which happens before and after totality, you must look through safe solar viewing glasses (“eclipse glasses”) or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times. Eclipse glasses are NOT regular sunglasses; regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the Sun,” it added.

NASA emphasised that the concentrated solar rays will burn through the filter and cause serious eye injury, adding, “Do NOT look at the Sun through a camera lens, telescope, binoculars, or any other optical device while wearing eclipse glasses or using a handheld solar viewer.”

Moreover, one of the amazing side-effects of the eclipse is its ability to change the weather — but it has its limits, reported CNN.

Changes to temperature, wind speed and humidity occur as the moon crosses in front of the Sun and casts a shadow on Earth’s surface during a solar eclipse.

Follow, follow the Sun / And which way the wind blows / When this day is done 🎶

Today, April 8, 2024, the last total solar #eclipse until 2045 crossed North America. pic.twitter.com/YH618LeK1j

— NASA (@NASA) April 8, 2024

In the path of totality, temperatures drop by around 10 degrees, additionally, it also start to feel more humid and winds and cloud coverage could drop.

Scientists understand the concept of how solar material flows from the sun in a better way by observing the sun during eclipses, according to CNN.

Charged particles known as plasma create space weather that interacts with an upper layer of Earth’s atmosphere, called the ionosphere.

Many low-Earth orbit satellites and radio waves operate in the ionosphere, which means dynamic space weather has an impact on GPS and long-distance radio communications.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Stock market today: BSE Sensex and Nifty50, the Indian benchmark equity indices, hit all time highs in opening trade on Tuesday. While BSE Sensex crossed the 75,000 milestone for the first time, Nifty50 too hit a high of 22,765.10.