Af-Pak-US talks in May: Haqqani
Pakistan's ambassador to the US denies reports of Pakistan advising Afghanistan against US partnership.
WASHINGTON:
Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States Hussain Haqqani said on Saturday that Afghanistan and the US will hold trilateral talks on May 3 to resolve the Afghan conflict while denying media reports about Pakistan advising Afghanistan against cooperation with the US.
“We will have a lot of such stories as we move forward. The key thing is that all three players — the United States, Afghanistan and Pakistan — understand that the way forward is: we have to defeat some people in Afghanistan and we have to engage certain people,” Haqqani said while talking to CNN on the programme called Situation Room.
The Wall Street Journal’s report cited Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani as saying that the US has failed both the countries and China is a better partner which is Pakistan’s “all weather” friend.
However, Haqqani, in response to this citation, said, “China is definitely an all-weather friend of Pakistan. We have been friends of China since 1949. We were the country that helped the United States and China come close together… We have never looked upon the United States and China as rivals for our friendship.”
Haqqani also made it clear that Pakistan does not want to fully depend on American assistance, but it cannot be totally cut. “The 9/11 incident happened because America turned its back on Pakistan and Afghanistan, ignored what was happening there.”
Referring to the media report, he said that it was clear that internal Afghan politics is being played out in American newspapers.
Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States Hussain Haqqani said on Saturday that Afghanistan and the US will hold trilateral talks on May 3 to resolve the Afghan conflict while denying media reports about Pakistan advising Afghanistan against cooperation with the US.
“We will have a lot of such stories as we move forward. The key thing is that all three players — the United States, Afghanistan and Pakistan — understand that the way forward is: we have to defeat some people in Afghanistan and we have to engage certain people,” Haqqani said while talking to CNN on the programme called Situation Room.
The Wall Street Journal’s report cited Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani as saying that the US has failed both the countries and China is a better partner which is Pakistan’s “all weather” friend.
However, Haqqani, in response to this citation, said, “China is definitely an all-weather friend of Pakistan. We have been friends of China since 1949. We were the country that helped the United States and China come close together… We have never looked upon the United States and China as rivals for our friendship.”
Haqqani also made it clear that Pakistan does not want to fully depend on American assistance, but it cannot be totally cut. “The 9/11 incident happened because America turned its back on Pakistan and Afghanistan, ignored what was happening there.”
Referring to the media report, he said that it was clear that internal Afghan politics is being played out in American newspapers.