JEDDAH — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Sunday that it is recalling its ambassador in Canada for consultation and simultaneously declared the Ambassador of Canada persona non-grata, giving him 24 hours to leave.

Saudi Arabia has also decided to freeze all new trade and investment deals between the Kingdom and Canada while retaining its right to take other measures, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

Saudi Arabia took this firm stance following Canada’s statement about “civil society activists” that was negative and baseless. The ministry said what the Canadian foreign minister and the Canadian Embassy said about what they called “civil society activists” was false allegations and not based on truth.

The ministry considers the Canadian statements as a blatant interference in the Kingdom’s internal affairs that violates simple international norms that governs relations between countries. — SPA