ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Embassy in Washington is issuing visas to Americans intending to travel to Islamabad, ignoring all the clearance requirements set by the country’s security agencies.
“There was a need to resolve a months-long row between Washington and Islamabad over the delay in visa issuance by both sides, which lasted up until August this year that led to the decision by the Presidency to empower Ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani to start issuing visas to Americans on fast-track basis,” a Pakistani diplomat told Pakistan Today.
The diplomat said that the Pakistani embassy started issuing around 800 pending visas to American diplomats and other officials in the wake of the decision and in response, the US authorities too gave dozens of visas to Pakistanis.
“Our embassy in Washington is now issuing visas, sometimes within hours, whereas earlier the time of clearance for any visa was three to four weeks during which a case was also sent to Islamabad for scrutiny by security agencies,” the diplomat said. He said, “Ambassador Haqqani has the authority not only to grant visas speedily but also for a time period of one year.” A Pakistani security official confirmed that disturbing reports had reached Islamabad about the speedy issuance of visas to US nationals by the Pakistani embassy in Washington.
He said it was being done after a high-level government decision, as the American authorities were deeply perturbed over the delay in the issuance of visas by Islamabad owing to certain concerns.
He said the security agencies were concerned and they were still of the view that the lifting of the required scrutiny mechanisms could be harmful to the country’s security interests. “Pakistani security agencies were of the view that the scrutiny of people coming from the US, especially defense-related personnel, was of great significance,” he said.
“At present reports such as issuance of visas to dozens of US nationals including officials of a private American defense contracting firms without having any security clearance are being verified in Islamabad and once it is established that they are true, a decision to take up the matter with the Foreign Office will be made,” the official said.
