The United States on Thursday made high-level contact with Pakistan on the issue of abducted American national Warren Weinstein, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton making a phone call to her Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar and demanding accelerated efforts for the swift recovery of the US citizen, who was kidnapped from Lahore on August 13. Clinton had a detailed discussion with Khar on the abduction of Weinstein, a 63-year old American ‘aid expert’, as she asked for speeding up of efforts by Pakistani security agencies for his recovery.
“The US secretary of state also expressed her concern over media reports quoting Pakistani investigators that the US citizen was seriously injured while offering resistance to the kidnappers,” an official privy to the conversation between the two foreign ministers said. A statement issued by the Foreign Office said during the conversation, the two top diplomats had a constructive exchange of views on carrying forward the trajectory of bilateral relations. Khar also had a meeting with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.
According to an official, Weinstein’s abduction and its adverse impact on the already strained relations between Pakistan and United States also came up during the discussion. The abduction of US citizen from Lahore is seen as another burning issue between Islamabad and Washington. Adding further to the mystery surrounding the abduction, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah had said that Weinstein was engaged in mysterious activities like those of CIA contractor Raymond Davis.
