US Secretary of State Tillerson lands in Pakistan
Rex Tillerson will hold meetings with civil and military leadership of Pakistan during the visit.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News / AFP) - US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has arrived in Islamabad today (Tuesday). He will hold meetings with civil and military leadership of Pakistan during the visit to discuss continued strong bilateral cooperation.
Pakistan’s critical role in the success of US South Asia strategy and expanding economic ties between the two countries will also come under discussion during the meetings.
The US Secretary of State will build on the positive conversations he and the Vice President have had with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s recent visit to the Unites States.
Earlier, Rex Tillerson reached Afghanistan on an unannounced visit and helg meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah took place at the heavily protected Bagram Airfield.
During his talks with Afghan leaders, Rex Tillerson said that US wants to work closely with Pakistan to create a more stable and secure Pakistan as well.
The US-Pakistan relationship has waxed and waned dramatically since Trump took office in January.
Pakistan said the President had praised its then-prime minister Nawaz Sharif as "terrific" in an effusive phone call when Trump took office in January.
But Trump’s blistering speech in August accusing Pakistan of harbouring militants saw Islamabad angrily hit back at the claims, insisting they discount the thousands of lives lost and billions spent in fighting extremism.
Following the speech Tillerson cautioned Pakistan that it could lose its status as a privileged military ally if it continued providing support to Afghan militant groups.
As one of 16 "Non-NATO Major Allies", Pakistan benefits from billions of dollars in aid and has access to advanced US military technology banned from other countries.
Earlier this month Pakistani forces acting on American intelligence rescued a US-Canadian family that had been in Taliban captivity for five years, sparking hopes that ties were on the mend.
The rescue was followed by a series of drone strikes on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border targeting long-time foes to both Washington and Islamabad.
The US has vowed to send more than 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, on top of the 11,000 already deployed there, to train and advise Afghan security forces as part of a new strategy outlined by the administration.
