LAHORE
The United States and Pakistan have informally discussed the possibilities of a civil nuclear deal, US Special Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke said on Thursday, according to TV reports.
Holbrooke said that the meeting of the Pakistani delegation, which is in
Washington for the strategic dialogue with the Obama administration, had a very productive meeting with the US president. The special envoy said the US administration had sought the details of Islamabad’s nuclear deal with China, adding that it remained to be seen how far the deal adhered to international conventions.
Holbrooke said the US wanted to see better relations between India and Pakistan, but “Washington will not mediate on the Kashmir issue”. He said that the US administration was not in direct contact with the Taliban in Afghanistan, adding that peace in the war-torn country was in Pakistan’s own interest.
He said Washington wished to see the continuity of democratic order in Pakistan. Meanwhile, Ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani telephoned Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and informed him of the details of the meeting between President Obama and the Pakistani delegation participating in the ongoing US-Pak Strategic Dialogue being held in Washington DC.
The ambassador told Gilani that Obama had assured the delegation that the US would extend all possible assistance to Pakistan for overcoming the financial crisis the country was facing.
