PM reaffirms govt’s desire to further strengthen ties with US

ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Friday reaffirmed the government’s desire to further strengthen bilateral cooperation with the United States in key areas including trade and investment, energy, security, and climate change.

He expressed these views while talking to US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome, who called on the prime minister here.

Ambassador Blome congratulated the prime minister on assuming office and reaffirmed the United States’ desire for supporting Pakistan’s economic and development agenda, the official news agency reported.

The prime minister said that Pakistan and the US enjoyed longstanding and broad-based relations, rooted in mutual respect, common interests and shared values.

The prime minister emphasised that the caretaker government’s main responsibility is to assist the Election Commission of Pakistan in the electoral process and provide constitutional continuity during the period of democratic transition.

He expressed satisfaction over the current positive trajectory of bilateral ties and appreciated the United States’ role in helping Pakistan to stabilise its economy and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to continue the reform agenda for achieving sustainable growth.

Noting the role that the US private sector has traditionally played in supporting Pakistan’s economic growth, he hoped that more US companies would explore the investment opportunities, particularly to tap the vast potential for investment in Pakistan’s information technology sector.

Lauding the important contributions of the Pakistani-American community towards strengthening ties between the two countries, Prime Minister Kakar called for increasing people-to-people contacts between the two countries.