Pakistan welcomes US upgraded travel advisory level

Dunya News

The US had moved Pakistan from its list of "do not travel" to "reconsider travel".

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The Foreign Office Spokesperson on Saturday welcomed the recent United States’ revision of travel advisory over Pakistan, upgrading it to Level 3.

On his twitter handle, Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, said that the recent upgraded travel advisory by the US was an acknowledgement of the improved security environment in Pakistan and effective handling of COVID-19 pandemic.

On Friday, the United States had updated its travel advisory for Pakistan, moving the country from its list of "do not travel" to "reconsider travel".

The US has four travel advisory levels that include  Exercise normal precautions ,  Exercise increased precautions ,  Reconsider travel , and  Do not travel .

As per the notification by the US State Department of State, Washington has urged its citizens, however, to reconsider travel to Pakistan due to terrorism and sectarian violence.

“Pakistan’s security environment has improved since 2014 when Pakistani security forces undertook concerted counter terrorist and counter militant operations,” the latest travel advisory noted.

“There are greater security resources and infrastructure in major cities, particularly Islamabad, and security forces in these areas may be more readily able to respond to an emergency compared to other areas of the country,” the advisory added.

The advisory pointed out that “while threats still exist, terrorist attacks are rare in Islamabad.” The notification, however, urged US citizens to “reconsider travel to Pakistan due to terrorism and sectarian violence” and suggested additional caution due to Covid-19, as “some areas have increased risk.”