US delegation to visit Pakistan for minerals, security
A US delegation headed by a senior State Department official will travel to Pakistan this week, the first such visit under President Donald Trump's administration.
A State Department handout issued on Sunday said that Eric Meyer, Senior Bureau Official (SBO) for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, will lead an interagency delegation to Islamabad from April 8-10. The visit aims to advance US interests in the critical minerals sector through participation in the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum.
He would meet with senior Pakistani officials to expand opportunities for American businesses in Pakistan and promote the deepening of economic ties between the two countries. Meyer would also engage with senior officials "to underscore the vital importance of our continued collaboration on counterterrorism", according to the statement.
The participation of US delegation in the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum shows Washington's interest beyond the traditional focus on security and counterterrorism.
Under the Biden Administration, the US was keen to offer loan to Pakistan for the lucrative Reko Diq mine project. It is believed that President Trump is even more keen to make investment in the mineral resources across the world including Pakistan.
The Export-Import (Exim) Bank of the United States, the US government's sovereign export credit agency, is keen on backing the Reko Diq project with financing. The project requires $3 to 3.5 billion in debt financing and many countries, including the US, are interested in the financing.
Meanwhile, the US delegation would also discuss the counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan. Islamabad view Washington's support crucial in the fight against terrorism.
The US National Intelligence in an annual assessment released recently declared the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as future threat for Washington.
This, according to Pakistani officials, might open a new phase of cooperation between the two countries.
The visit of the US delegation was a follow-up of the recent trip by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's key foreign policy aid to Washington as part of Pakistan's efforts to reset ties with the United States under the Trump Administration.
Special Assistant to Prime Minister Sayed Tariq Fatami was in the US capital and held a series of meetings with the Trump administration's officials and influential Congressmen in order to open a sustained channel of communication with the new administration.
Sources said that the government decided to send Fatami to Washington in order to get sense of the ground situation with regards to Trump's priorities. Islamabad was buoyed by the fact that President Trump praised Islamabad for helping the US capture one of the key facilitators of August 2021 Kabul Airport attack.
Separately, a US congressional delegation, led by Congressmen General Jack Bergman and Tom Tom Suozzi, will visit Pakistan from April 10 to 15 to hold talks with senior Pakistani leaders on trade, defence and education.
The aim of the visit is to promote bilateral relations. The delegation would meet with Pakistan's top political and military leadership, leaders of various political parties. The delegation would also visit Azad Jammu and Kashmir as well as the Kartarpur Corridor.
(With input from Khalid Mahmood)