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Pakistan, US optimistic about Imran-Trump meeting
Trust level between Pakistan and US is already improving. This meeting (between Imran and Trump) will help remove the trust issue,” says an official
ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and the United States are optimistic about the upcoming meeting between Prime Minister Imran Khan and US President Donald Trump.
The two are expected to meet for the first time to discuss bilateral ties later this month in the US.
Senior officials at the foreign ministry told The Nation that the two leaders will discuss the future partnership when they sit together. “The meeting has been long due. It should be happening this month at last. They (the two leaders) will discuss everything that has to be discussed,” said one official.
Another official said the two sides were going into the highest level meeting in an optimistic mode. “Trust level between Pakistan and the US is already improving. This meeting (between Imran Khan and Trump) will help remove the trust issue,” he added.
Prime Minister Imran Khan is scheduled to visit the US on July 20 for five days. The visit, originally planned in June, was rescheduled because of Imran Khan’s prior domestic engagements, especially due to the federal budget 2019.
Earlier, the US appreciated Pakistan for improving the trust level with Afghanistan as President Ashraf Ghani completed his two-day Pakistan visit last week.
Pakistan also decided to extend the stay of registered Afghan refugees living in Pakistan till June 30 next year. The decision by the Ministry of States and Frontier Regions came during Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s visit to Pakistan and just before the June 30 deadline.
During his stay in Pakistan, President Ashraf Ghani underlined clarity of vision, honesty and good strategy in order to further boost Pak-Afghan relations.
He said two items were crucial for the Afghan government including the normalization of relations with Pakistan, and to find a political solution to the conflict in and around Afghanistan.
In his meeting with PM Khan, President Ghani agreed to open a ‘new chapter of friendship’ and partnership based on mutual trust.
Pakistan told the Afghanistan President that Islamabad supported the reconciliation process in Afghanistan and warned Kabul to stay away from trouble makers.
The two countries agreed to cooperate based on mutual trust and harmony for the benefit of the two peoples and countries and for advancing the cause of peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
Prior to his meeting with Ghani, Prime Minister Khan had said that Pakistan had “no favourite” in the upcoming presidential elections. The PM, who met a delegation of senior Afghan leaders leading different groups here, said Pakistan respected the Afghan people’s right to elect their leadership.
The Afghan leaders had earlier participated in the Lahore Peace Process organised by the Lahore Centre for Peace and Research in Murree. Fifty-seven Afghan politicians, including Hizb-e-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, former Balkh governor Atta Mohammad Noor, second deputy chief executive Mohammad Mohaqeq, and presidential candidate Abdul Latif Pedram, attended the peace conference in Pakistan.
The presidential election scheduled for September 28 will be a key moment to reaffirm the legitimacy of Afghanistan’s democratic political structure. There are significant operational and technical challenges to be overcome.
The US and Taliban are already in talks to reach to some types of conclusion on a timetable for troop withdrawal as well as intra-Afghan talks. This is the seventh round of the US-Taliban talks.
The Afghan government has announced to release almost 900 Taliban prisoners. So far, figures show that almost 400 of the prisoners have been released.
Relations between Pakistan and the US have remained tense during Trump’s tenure. The US president has publically said that Pakistan has given us “nothing but lies and deceit” and also suspended security and other assistance for backing terror groups.
Source
Trust level between Pakistan and US is already improving. This meeting (between Imran and Trump) will help remove the trust issue,” says an official
ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and the United States are optimistic about the upcoming meeting between Prime Minister Imran Khan and US President Donald Trump.
The two are expected to meet for the first time to discuss bilateral ties later this month in the US.
Senior officials at the foreign ministry told The Nation that the two leaders will discuss the future partnership when they sit together. “The meeting has been long due. It should be happening this month at last. They (the two leaders) will discuss everything that has to be discussed,” said one official.
Another official said the two sides were going into the highest level meeting in an optimistic mode. “Trust level between Pakistan and the US is already improving. This meeting (between Imran Khan and Trump) will help remove the trust issue,” he added.
Prime Minister Imran Khan is scheduled to visit the US on July 20 for five days. The visit, originally planned in June, was rescheduled because of Imran Khan’s prior domestic engagements, especially due to the federal budget 2019.
Earlier, the US appreciated Pakistan for improving the trust level with Afghanistan as President Ashraf Ghani completed his two-day Pakistan visit last week.
Pakistan also decided to extend the stay of registered Afghan refugees living in Pakistan till June 30 next year. The decision by the Ministry of States and Frontier Regions came during Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s visit to Pakistan and just before the June 30 deadline.
During his stay in Pakistan, President Ashraf Ghani underlined clarity of vision, honesty and good strategy in order to further boost Pak-Afghan relations.
He said two items were crucial for the Afghan government including the normalization of relations with Pakistan, and to find a political solution to the conflict in and around Afghanistan.
In his meeting with PM Khan, President Ghani agreed to open a ‘new chapter of friendship’ and partnership based on mutual trust.
Pakistan told the Afghanistan President that Islamabad supported the reconciliation process in Afghanistan and warned Kabul to stay away from trouble makers.
The two countries agreed to cooperate based on mutual trust and harmony for the benefit of the two peoples and countries and for advancing the cause of peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
Prior to his meeting with Ghani, Prime Minister Khan had said that Pakistan had “no favourite” in the upcoming presidential elections. The PM, who met a delegation of senior Afghan leaders leading different groups here, said Pakistan respected the Afghan people’s right to elect their leadership.
The Afghan leaders had earlier participated in the Lahore Peace Process organised by the Lahore Centre for Peace and Research in Murree. Fifty-seven Afghan politicians, including Hizb-e-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, former Balkh governor Atta Mohammad Noor, second deputy chief executive Mohammad Mohaqeq, and presidential candidate Abdul Latif Pedram, attended the peace conference in Pakistan.
The presidential election scheduled for September 28 will be a key moment to reaffirm the legitimacy of Afghanistan’s democratic political structure. There are significant operational and technical challenges to be overcome.
The US and Taliban are already in talks to reach to some types of conclusion on a timetable for troop withdrawal as well as intra-Afghan talks. This is the seventh round of the US-Taliban talks.
The Afghan government has announced to release almost 900 Taliban prisoners. So far, figures show that almost 400 of the prisoners have been released.
Relations between Pakistan and the US have remained tense during Trump’s tenure. The US president has publically said that Pakistan has given us “nothing but lies and deceit” and also suspended security and other assistance for backing terror groups.
Source
