US relations back to normal now: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Thursday said Pakistan desired to improve its bilateral relations with the US in diverse fields.

Addressing a ceremony held to celebrate the 247th Independence Day of the United States of America, he said Pakistan and the US had made serious efforts to mend their ties, putting aside any misgivings and misunderstandings, and now the relations were back to normal.

He pledged his personal as head of the government and as a Pakistani to cultivate better and stronger relations with the US on the basis of mutual trust and respect. “Over the last 75 years, our relations have ups and downs but on the whole we have been very good friends,” he recalled.

He said the US was the largest trading partner of Pakistan and also a steadfast partner in the war against terrorism. In the fight against terrorism, Pakistan lost 80,000 people from all walks of life and this unparalleled sacrifice explained Pakistan’s commitment and the US had been a great supporter and partner in this fight, he remarked.

He said about five years ago, when Pakistan was facing serious power outages, the then government established 5,000 megawatts of LNG-based power plants and the entire equipment was brought from the US. He said both the countries had a huge ground to cover and expand their ties in different fields, including agriculture and information technology. Pakistan had great talent and youth bulge, which was a challenge but it could be turned into an opportunity with the support and cooperation of the United States.

He praised the United States for its support during the devastating floods last year. “We value support of the US which had been the biggest donor and very helpful in providing relief to millions of flood-affected people,” he added.

Shehbaz felicitated President Joe Biden, and the people and the government of the United States on their 247th Independence Day. He said he looked forward to visits of high-powered US delegations to further enhance cooperation.

In his remarks, US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome said the economic partnership of the United States with Pakistan was expanding. The US had been a leading investor in Pakistan and also Pakistan’s largest export market, he said, adding during a ministerial meeting, both the countries made a significant progress in expanding market access for goods and services.

Separately, PM Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan had struck a loan deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after facing great hardships, but the loan the country was acquiring was not a sign of prosperity but a compulsion.

Addressing the tribal elders in Judbah, the headquarters of tribal Torghar district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, he highlighted the country’s fragile economic and political situation without directly criticising former premier Imran Khan. “You know well this country has reached the brink of complete devastation economically after the so-called change in 2018. Now, we have managed to revive the IMF programme despite huge difficulties,” he said.

The premier said though the internal and external enemies tried to create economic chaos and turmoil in the country, the coalition government’s economic team, led by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, foiled all conspiracies and struck a deal with the IMF.

He praised Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir for his effective contribution to bringing $3 billion to the country from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates at the critical juncture. “I am grateful to the army chief, who extended me and my government all-out support and got involved with Saudi Arabia and the UAE and fetched $3 billion for the country to steer it out of the economic crisis,” Shehbaz added.

He called for joint efforts to steer the country out of the prevailing challenges. “Seventy-five years down the road, now it is high time the political leadership, judiciary, and armed forces should get united to put Pakistan on road to progress or else the nation will not forgive us,” he warned.

Earlier, the PM inaugurated development projects of roads, tunnels, electricity and a bridge worth Rs18 billion at the Indus River and announced two girls’ degree colleges and a Daanish school for the Torghar district.

“This road, which I have inaugurated, will link Torghar with Malakand division, Mardan, Buner, Swabi and then Peshawar and reduce a six-hour journey to almost one-and-half hours,” Shehbaz said. He added that the bridge and tunnel, which would be built in Torghar and link that territory with the rest of the province, would also bring revolutionary economic and social changes in the lives of locals.

Also, PM Shehbaz Sharif Thursday directed the foreign ministry to extend full support to Dr Fauzia Siddiqui for her next visit to the US, and also constituted a ministerial committee that will gear up efforts for early release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui. The PM issued directions during his meeting with Dr Fauzia Siddiqui, sister of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, here at PM House. This was the second meeting of the PM with Dr Fauzia within the last three months. PM Shehbaz directed the foreign ministry to remain fully engaged with the US government, as well as Pakistan’s mission in Washington, for Dr Aafia’s well-being and for her early release.