WASHINGTON: The US State Department has said that Pakistan’s denying that there are terrorist safe havens on its soil would not automatically lead to sanctions against it.
Speaking to media representatives during a news briefing, Spokesperson Heather Nauert refused to assess the impact of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s visit to Pakistan on US-Pakistan ties.
“I don’t want to forecast anything that could come in the future,” Nauert said when asked if Pakistan’s claim that there were no safe haven issues within its borders could lead to US cuts in aid sanctions against the country.
On his maiden visit to Islamabad, Tillerson pressed Pakistan to speed up its efforts against terrorism but described Islamabad as “incredibly important” player to deal with some of the pressing challenges facing the region.
While renewing the US demand seeking action against Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network – he said many of the solutions to the regional challenges have to be found in Pakistan in a statement that underlines the importance of Islamabad in the Trump administration’s new strategy for Afghanistan and South Asia.
“Pakistan has an incredibly important role in that South Asia strategy. The country is very important to us. The security, the stability of the country is very important to us,” the secretary of state said.
“And many of the solutions to the regional challenges are – have to be found here as well in dealing with the leadership in Pakistan, and so we’re here to have further discussions about that,” he added.
Tillerson held talks with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi while Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, DG ISI Lieutenant General Naveed Mukhtar and other officials also attended the meeting held at the PM office. Later he flew to New Delhi after the four-hour stay in Islamabad.
The US official demanded that Pakistan must increase its efforts to eradicate militants and terrorists operating within the country, a telling message he delivered to the country’s civil and military leadership.
