Pakistan, US To Hold Defence Talks In Washington To Strengthen Security Ties

Pakistan and the United States will hold defence talks in Washington on Monday to discuss various options for strengthening bilateral military and security ties, according to the Pakistan Foreign Office.

The talks, which will take place from Monday to Thursday, will be the second round of the Pakistan-US Mid-Level Defence Dialogue, following the first round, which was held in Pakistan in January 2021, according to a statement issued on Sunday.

“Pakistan's inter-agency delegation, led by the chief of general staff, will include senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Joint Staff Headquarters and three service headquarters. The US multi-agency team will be represented by the office of the undersecretary of defence, according to the statement.

The two countries' relations have recently improved and the defence talks are a manifestation of that, according to the statement.

According to the Dawn newspaper, US State Department Counsellor Derek Chollet stressed the importance of assisting Islamabad in fighting terrorists who recently killed over 80 people inside a mosque in Peshawar's Police Lines compound.

Chollet, who handles special diplomatic assignments for the US Secretary of State, is scheduled to visit Islamabad next week for talks on a variety of issues, according to the report.

For the US, it's going to be about how we can deepen the partnership further and help Pakistan as it's trying to deal with what is an unquestionably challenging economic situation, said the senior US diplomat when asked what the top item on his agenda would be.

He stated that Pakistan was still recovering from the floods and was dealing with an emerging counterterrorism threat, which had exacerbated the situation.

Chollet noted that the United States and Pakistan were already taking steps to strengthen their ties, which had deteriorated during the Afghan war but began to improve soon after US troops left Kabul.

I believe the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) talks will take place in Washington the week after I return. He said we will also hold a counterterrorism dialogue next month.

According to the report, the counterterrorism dialogue, which is expected to take place in Islamabad next month, will focus on groups such as the banned militant outfits Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State-Khorasan, which have resumed operations in the region.