US ambassador, army chief discuss bilateral ties, regional security at GHQ

Meeting comes days after FM Khawaja Asif ruled out any possibility of Pak-US joint operations in Afghan border areas

United States Ambassador to Pakistan David Hale called on Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters (GHQ) on Thursday, the army’s media wing said.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), bilateral and regional security issues were discussed in the meeting.

The meeting came days after Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif categorically ruled out any possibility of Pakistan-US joint operations in the areas bordering Afghanistan.

No joint Pak-US operations, says Asif

He had said this while speaking at the 4th Round of US-Pakistan Bilateral Dialogue held under the title ‘Convergence amid Divergence: Identifying Pathways to Cooperation in a Challenging Environment’.

“The United States should share timely intelligence, and Pakistan will take action itself, with self-defence and self-interest as our first priority … we are fully committed to protecting the sovereignty of our motherland… we will not either allow our soil to be used against any other country,” he said.

The foreign minister also claimed that the Washington had assured Islamabad that India’s role in Afghanistan would be confined to the economy alone.