Washington/Islamabad: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the 75th anniversary of ties between Washington and Islamabad during a phone call with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.
The State Department said during the call on Wednesday, the two sides “reaffirmed our joint goals for enhancing US-Pakistan bilateral partnerships on economic stability, climate, and health”.
“The Secretary and the Foreign Minister also discussed coordination to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, regional stability, commercial and people-to-people ties, and the devastating effects of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s unprovoked war on Ukraine on food security in Pakistan and worldwide,” the Department added.
According to the Foreign Office in Islamabad, Bilawal told Blinken that he looked forward to “frequent exchange of high-level visits” to realise the full potential of bilateral cooperation across a vast range of areas, Xinhua news agency reported.
Given the demographic and economic potential of Pakistan, the Foreign Minister said that the US may invest in the South Asian nation’s growing market, adding that future engagement and meetings between the two countries would give further impetus to trade and commercial ties.
Bilawal also tweeted about his conversation with Blinken.
“We agreed to expand our engagement in trade, energy, health & security marking 75 years of our relationship. We must increase people-to-people & business-to-business contacts,” the Foreign Minister added.
Bilawal and Blinken had their first face-to-face meeting in New York on May 18 where the two had affirmed their shared desire for a strong and prosperous bilateral relationship.
–IANS