Ahsan Iqbal addresses roundtable hosted by USIP on “Pakistan-US Relations – looking forward”
Federal Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Mr. Ahsan Iqbal has said that the shared values and aspirations for democracy, rule of law and diversity were natural bonds between the people of Pakistan and United States and provided a solid base to transform their existing relationship into a robust developmental partnership.
He was addressing a roundtable hosted by United States Institute of Peace on “Pakistan-US Relations – looking forward.”
“Time has come to reset Pak-US relations in economic and development domain,” the Minister said.
Discussing Pak-US bilateral cooperation, the Minister highlighted education, healthcare, energy, technology, agriculture, food security and climate change as the key areas for greater collaboration between the two countries.
Discussing regional situation, the Minister said that Pakistan was a key stakeholder in regional peace and stability. He said that the situation in Afghanistan had direct bearings on Pakistan and therefore Pakistan advocates proactive engagement of the international community to mitigate humanitarian crisis in the neighboring Afghanistan.
The Minister also highlighted situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir and stressed the upon the need for the international community, United States and champions of human rights across the globe to take cognizance of the situation.
The participants also interacted with the Minister and discussed host of issues including political and economic situation of Pakistan.
Washington D.C, July 18, 2022
