WASHINGTON – Following a change in the schedule, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will reportedly visit the White House in Washington to hold a meeting with a key security official on Tuesday before calling upon Secretary of State Michael Pompeo.
The foreign minister reached Washington DC on Sunday to hold bilateral talks with the US officials after attending the United Nations General Assembly session in New York.
According to an English daily, the minister will be visiting the White House on October 2 to meet National Security Adviser John Bolton for talks on bilateral relations.
Qureshi will then proceed to the US State Department for his second meeting with Pompeo.
Today, the foreign minister will hold a meeting with Pakistani diplomats and other to prepared for the high-level talks. This is the second round of talks between Islamabad and Washington as Pompeo last month visited Pakistan and hold key meetings with Prime Minister Imran Khan, foreign minister, army chief and others.
On September 24, Qureshi, who is on his second official tour after assuming charge, said that Pakistan needed to maintain its relationship with the United States.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/pakistan/fm-shah-mehmood-to-meet-us-secretary-of-state-mike-pompeo-next-week/
Washington has always benefitted from the bilateral ties with Islamabad, however, Pakistan will now work on what is favourable for it, Qureshi noted.
The foreign minister also highlighted that Pakistan should also develop and continue the friendly relationship it has with its northside neighbour, China.
Linkages with both of the ally states were necessary, said the minister and added that Pakistan desires foreign relations based on mutual respect and equality.
Speaking at an interactive session with the Pakistani-American community at the Pakistani Embassy, Qureshi said Prime Minister Imran Khan was keen for the country to engage with the expatriates in the US because he knows and appreciates their strengths and contributions.
On the issue of Peace in Afghanistan, Qureshi commented that Islamabad wants peace in the war-torn country citing that his first foreign trip, after assuming the office, was to Kabul.
‘A political solution and not a military one was needed for the Afghan conflict especially taking into account that Pakistan’s peace and well-being was directly related to that in Afghanistan,’ Qureshi observed.
The foreign minister opined that mutual talks and understanding helps build trust, while two-way communications facilitate both countries to understand each other’s policies.
