Pakistan and the United States will hold vital talks on various bilateral and regional matters with focus on “reconciliation process with the Taliban in Afghanistan” later this week, as US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman arrives in Islamabad on the weekend.
Addressing his weekly press briefing on Thursday, Foreign Office spokesman Moazzam Khan announced the upcoming visit of President Barack Obama’s special envoy for this region to Islamabad.
He said, “The US representative’s visit is basically part of engagements between the two countries. Both sides will discuss all issues of mutual interest and concern.”
The US State Department also said Ambassador Grossman will visit Pakistan for talks on bilateral matters and Afghanistan. On its website, the State Department said “Grossman will continue our work with the Pakistani government to identify our shared interests and focus on actions we can take together”.
According to another official in the Foreign Ministry, the purpose of Grossman’s visit to Islamabad later this week was to build on recent engagements between Pakistan and the US, including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s meetings with Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar in Washington and her meeting with President Asif Zardari in New York.
He said the visit would be focused on giving impetus to the reconciliation process between US, Afghanistan and the Taliban.
To a question, the FO spokesman said, “The attack on Malala Yousafzai is a reprehensible act, it is condemnable and there is no justification to link it to other matters.”
Asked whether the issue of teen girls’ education activist was being exploited by the US and the UK to launch an operation in North Waziristan‚ he said, “It is very unfortunate if we think that way.”
To a question on a report in Bangladeshi media regarding the alleged affair of Foreign Minister Khar and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and also whether the FO was going to take any legal action or to lodge a protest against the Bangladeshi newspaper for damaging the honour of the foreign minister, Khan said, “I think the whole story was sickening and it was not even worth-commenting on.”
To a query on Pakistan’s new ambassador to China and that all three names sent to the Presidency by the FO had been reportedly turned down by the president as he was backing a junior diplomat in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs against rules and merit, the FO spokesman said, “There is a process involved for the selection of ambassadors. Proposals are prepared and submitted to the leadership, and at the end of the day it is the prerogative of the leadership to select whosoever they find suitable for the position.”
“Since, it is an administrative matter, I am not in a position to discuss or say anything about it. Let me also tell you that as a normal practice until/unless the host government conveys its agreement we do not make any appointment public,” he said.
On the visit of Russian foreign minister to Islamabad, he said, “The two sides did discuss Afghanistan and that there was a convergence of views on Afghanistan. Both sides attach great importance to peace and stability in Afghanistan. It is difficult to go into the details of various aspects of the discussions but I can tell you that the two sides did discuss Afghanistan and various related issues.”
Asked whether the FO had received any letter from the government that was meant for the Swiss authorities, Khan said, “I am not aware of that.”
To a question whether the matters of Afghan interference in Pakistan and the statement by the Afghan president were discussed during the recent meeting of President Zardari and Hamid Karzai in Baku, he said, “My understanding is that there was no formal meeting between President Karzai and President Zardari in Baku. However, the president did meet with the presidents of Iran and Azerbaijan and the prime minister of Turkey in Baku.”
