JEDDAH – King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense, Wednesday joined world leaders in congratulating US President Barack Obama on his sweeping reelection. “On the occasion of your election as President of the United States for a second term, I express the best wishes and congratulate you, wishing you constant good health and happiness, and more progress and prosperity for the people of the United States of America. We praise on this occasion the strength of close historical relations between our countries which we have been keen to further develop in all fields,” the King said a cable. A separate cable of congratulations was sent by the Crown Prince. Congratulations poured in from across the world, including UN Security Council members Britain, China, France and Russia. Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi also hailed the win, saying he hoped it would strengthen the “friendship between the two countries.” In Beijing, Chinese President Hu Jintao, who himself is handing over power at a Communist Party congress starting this week, noted “positive progress” in Sino-US relations over the past four years. In Europe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel wrote to Obama saying she looked forward to continuing cooperation “so both our countries can continue to stand side-by-side to contend with the important foreign policy and economic challenges that we face as friends and allies.” Her message was echoed by European Union President Herman Van Rompuy, Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and French President Francois Hollande. – With agencies
