Before heading to US, Asif to visit four countries to seek support

islamabad — Ahead of his maiden visit to the US, Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif will travel to China, Russia, Turkey and Iran this week to drum up support for Islamabad after US President Donald Trump accused it of having terrorist sanctuaries.

Trump, in his first prime-time televised address to announce his Afghanistan and South Asia policy, hit out at Pakistan for providing safe havens to “agents of chaos” that kill Americans in Afghanistan and warned Islamabad that it has “much to lose” by harbouring terrorists.

Defence Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan confirmed Asif’s visit to these countries during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defence here.

Asif will leave for Washington after his visit to these four countries, according the defence minister.

The foreign minister, who was invited by his US counterpart Rex Tillerson for a visit last month, delayed the trip in order to firm up support for Pakistan, according to diplomatic sources.

Meanwhile, following the Brics nations’ “regional security concern” over the militant groups allegedly based in Pakistan, Khawaja Asif acknowledged the existence of such organisations, naming Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among the internationally banned outfits operating from within Pakistan.

Asif was talking to a private TV channel on Tuesday night.

According to Asif, the Brics concerns about the militant groups should not be considered as China’s official stance as other countries — Russia, India, Brazil and South Africa — are also a part of the group. He, however, hailed China’s role in ensuring that the declaration also highlighted the name of outlawed Tehreek-i-Taleban Pakistan, which he said is based in Afghanistan and carries out terror attacks in Pakistan. — PTI