FM Qureshi to meet US officials in Washington

As part of Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts for de-escalation after the recent tensions in Middle East and Gulf Region, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will visit Washington on January 16-17.

He will also visit New York on January 15, 2020, where he will meet UN leadership including the Secretary General.

While in Washington, the Foreign Minister will meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Advisor Robert O’ Brien and other senior Administration officials, a foreign office statement issued here on Tuesday said.

He will also have meetings on the Capitol Hill, besides engagements with the media, think tank community and the Pakistani Diaspora.

In the official talks, the Foreign Minister will focus on Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach, which has been undertaken on the direction of Prime Minister Imran Khan in the wake of recent tensions in the Middle East/Gulf Region, the statement said.

“The objective is to support efforts for de-escalation and resolution of differences and disputes through political and diplomatic means. The Foreign Minister’s visit to the U.S. is part of these endeavors,” it added.

The Foreign Minister, while reviewing full spectrum of bilateral relationship, will underscore the value Pakistan attaches to a broad-based, long-term and enduring partnership with the U.S in line with the vision of the leaders of the two countries.

He will also brief his interlocutors on the prevailing situation in the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK), especially the prolonged sufferings of the Kashmiris caused by India’s unilateral and illegal actions of August 5, 2019.

The Foreign Minister will also highlight Pakistan’s role and continued resolve to support the Afghan peace and reconciliation process, the statement concluded.