WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump wishes that Prime Minister Imran Khan would tour the White House, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Friday, and that he would welcome his Pakistani counterpart.
While speaking to media here, Qureshi said Trump and Khan would have two meetings in the US capital, with the first one scheduled to be held in the Oval Office and the second one set to take place in the Cabinet Room.
The premier, the foreign minister said, would also hold discussions with a delegation of the World Bank.
Following the state-level engagements, the PM would address the Pakistani community in the US during an event in the Capital One Arena in Washington, he added.
Qureshi said the government was trying to create a conducive environment for the investors in Pakistan.
A Pakistan Business Summit was also slated to be held after the community event, wherein the Pakistani-American community, as well as other businesspersons in the US, would participate.
Khan would make an address at that event too.
The FM said Pakistan’s military leadership would be accompanying the prime minister during his visit to the US.
On Pakistan’s relationship with the regional players, Qureshi said the bilateral ties with Afghanistan have had their ups and downs but that they were improving.
Throughout the world, Pakistan’s role in the Afghan peace process was acknowledged, he noted, adding that while an environment of trust and cooperation had bolstered between Islamabad and Kabul, it should be enhanced further.
South Asia needed peace, the minister stressed, adding that Pakistan wished for peace to prevail in Afghanistan. Peace between the two neighbouring countries was very closely tied, he added.
Qureshi noted that South Asia was behind in the race of development and that stability was required for it to progress. Pakistan wishes for stability in the region, he said.
At present, Pakistan was facing economic challenges, the FM said but added that the government was providing a conducive environment in the country for the investors. The economic corridor was not just limited to China and Pakistan was — alongside the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) — also developing economic zones that may include various other nations.
Qureshi said Iran was an important regional player. Pakistan has a long border with Tehran and wanted to keep it peaceful. It was Islamabad’s need, he stressed, adding that any tensions with Iran could impact Afghanistan and that a spat with Iran was not in favour of the US.
