Pakistan will continue to have engagement with US: Official

islamabad / washington — Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua has said that Pakistan will continue to have engagement, as far as possible, with the US because America is not only a global power but also has its presence in the region, and “for us its almost our neighbour”.

Delivering a lecture on ‘Pakistan’s Foreign Policy Issues’ at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) in Karachi on Saturday, she said: “We need to continue to have a measured response to all the rhetoric coming out of the US,” reports Dawn News.

In reply to a question, Janjua said US President Donald Trump’s tweet on January 1 could be well thought out or he was just being his impulsive self, or it could be a result of any other reason such as the fact that the US was not doing well in Afghanistan.

“The tweet that came on January 1 was a tweet that came for many reasons. We are trying to analyse why that tweet came. It could have been some briefing material given to him in the morning... What triggered it?”

Answering a question on Pakistan being put by the US on watch list for violation of religious freedom, Janjua said it had political reasons because right next door (in India) mob lynching of Muslims and minorities took place but no one took notice of it.

Meanwhile, a senior White House official has said that China shares some of the concerns of the US about the terrorism problem in Pakistan and Washington is seeking to work with Beijing and other regional players to convince Islamabad about the need to crackdown on alleged terror hideouts.

The US official hoped that China will play a helpful role in convincing Pakistan that it is in its own interest to crackdown on these groups.

Pakistan already has deep historical ties going back to many years and they have close military ties, the official said, adding that the economic relationship is also growing with the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.

“But, China shares some of the concerns of the US about the terrorism problem. The US is seeking to work with other regional players and China would be one of the main ones to deal with this issue. It won’t serve China’s interests to have terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan,” the administration official

The tweet that came on January 1 was a tweet that came for many reasons. We are trying to analyse why that tweet came. It could have been some briefing material given to him in the morning Tehmina Janjua, Foreign Secretary

said on condition of anonymity.

The official was quick to point out that China has been playing a more helpful role in terms of encouraging better relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

It is taking a more active role in that regard. “So, I would disagree with the assertion that China will not play a helpful role,” the official told a group of reporters in Washington on Friday.

“Ultimately, China is also working toward a stable Afghanistan. That’s going to take them back to the same issue which are the sanctuaries in Pakistan,” the official said. — IANS, PTI