PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has promised to stand together with the West in taking on the forces of terrorism, hours after voting finished in the country’s historic general election.
During a close-fought campaign Nawaz Sharif had promised to end drone strikes and review the country’s relationship with America.
As he publicly claimed victory in the poll, the two-time prime minister sought to reassure Western governments and said he would not pull back on the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban.
“I have experience of working with US counterparts and will be very happy to further work with them,” he told The Sunday Telegraph.
“What is most important is that we must never allow our soil to be used by anyone to create problems with any country in this world.”
Nawaz, 63, admitted making mistakes during his two previous terms in government, when he suffered repeated accusations of corruption.
“We are all human beings, we all make mistakes. The important thing is that we learn lessons from those mistakes. We are not angels,” he said, as a tiger brooch – the symbol of his party – glittered on his chest. “We are going to pick up where we left off in 1999.”