Looking forward to meet new Pakistani leadership: Trump

new york — US President Donald Trump has said that he was looking forward to meeting Pakistan’s new leadership, while expressing his desire to have “great relationship” with the country.

Trump made that statement in Washington in the course of a Press appearance at a cabinet meeting on the US government’s shutdown during which he defended his push for the United States to invest less overseas.

The president said: “We just can’t do that. So, I look forward to meeting with the folks from — and the new leadership in Pakistan, we’ll be doing that in the not-toodistant future. I ended the $1.3 billion we paid, it’s like water, we just do it.” Imran Khan, who took over as prime minister in August last year, said in a recent interview with The Washington Post that Pakistan wants a “proper relationship” with the United States similar to its ties with China.

He categorically rejected accusations that there were Taleban sanctuaries on Pakistani soil. “I would never want to have a relationship where Pakistan is treated like a hired gun — given money to fight someone else’s war,” PM Khan had said. “We should never put ourselves in this position again. It not only cost us human lives, devastation of our tribal areas, but it also cost us our dignity.” The US leader also said that his administration had initiated peace talks with the Taleban.

Last year, the United States sought Pakistan’s support to advance the Afghan peace process in a letter President Trump addressed to PM Khan. The letter came after Trump accused Pakistan of “doing nothing” despite receiving “billions of dollars” in aid.

The Pakistani leader gave a strong response to the allegations, advising Washington to assess its own effectiveness in the war on terror instead of making Pakistan a scapegoat for its failures.—

... I look forward to meeting with the folks from — and the new leadership in Pakistan, we’ll be doing that in the not-too-distant future Donald Trump, US president