Pakistan wants mutual respect, equality-based relations with US: Aizaz

Dunya News

Aizaz Chaudhry said that Pakistan does not want any violence or terrorism in Afghanistan.

WASHINGTON (Dunya News) - Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States (US), Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry on Friday said that would like to have good relations with the United States based on mutual respect and equality.

In an interview conducted by Mr Jeremy Hobson and Ms Dina Kesbeh for National Public Radio (NPR) s programme "Here & Now", Aizaz Chaudhry said that Pakistan does not want any violence or terrorism in Afghanistan.

Aizaz Chaudhry said that Pakistan has suffered from the instability in Afghanistan. We are the only country that will benefit the most — apart from the people of Afghanistan — if peace returns to Afghanistan.

He said that Pakistan condemns recent deadly attacks in Afghanistan in which innocent lives have been lost. But we also would like to express our disappointment that anything that happens in Afghanistan, no matter what, the only reaction that we hear from Kabul is to blame Pakistan

He said the solution to violence in Afghanistan lies in having a comprehensive political approach, and engaging in a genuine political dialogue between all Afghan factions. We don t want to be party to it. We think that it should be between Afghan government and all Afghan factions and the Taliban must be made to be part of that process.

Answering a question, he said that Pakistan would like to have good relations with the United States. The two countries have worked together for seven decades, and we think it would be a mistake to squander that relationship. Both countries have benefited from that relationship. And if that relationship goes down, I think both countries are going to lose.