WASHINGTON: Both the United States and Pakistan will attend the sixth meeting of the US-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue with a result-oriented approach, says Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani.
The sixth session, which is also the third ministerial review, will be held in Washington on Feb 29. Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and US Secretary of State John Kerry will lead their sides at the talks.
“This meeting is taking place against the backdrop of significant developments in Pakistan and the region,” Ambassador Jilani said.
He said that cooperation in the fight against terrorism would figure prominently in the talks as it “forms a salient feature of the bilateral relationship”.
But this cooperation “is driven by the common objective of peace, security and stability in the region”, he said.
Mr Jilani pointed out that the meeting was being held at a time signified by an upward trajectory in Pakistan-US relationship.
This year, the strategic dialogue precedes a nuclear summit that Washington is hosting on March 31 and April 1. Since this will be the last such meeting of the Obama administration, it is expected to persuade both recognised and unrecognised nuclear states to curb nuclear proliferation. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will represent Pakistan at this summit.
In the previous strategic dialogue, Pakistan and the United States agreed to work together to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery to states as well as non-state actors.
On Friday, the United States also expressed concern over the security of Pakistan’s tactical nuclear weapons. www.dawn.com/news/1240044/strategic-talks-would-be-result-oriented-says-ambassador
Comments are closed.