WASHINGTON: Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States (US) Masood Khan has said that Pakistan-US ties are strengthening in both non-security and security areas, with a special focus on investment and trade cooperation that emphasize the utility of the recently launched platform of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC).
The Pakistani Ambassador told a large audience in the prestigious University Club in Washington, “We must be partners and must continue to talk to each other and address issues that would hinder security and peace in the region, but, more significantly, we must develop people-to-people contacts and enhance economic cooperation.”
The club’s International Committee invited Masood Khan to speak on a wide array of topic.
The audience comprised businessmen, entrepreneurs, members of the think-tank community, opinion makers, and the media.
Pak-US Ties Set on Boosting Trade, Economy: Ambassador Khan
Highlighted the significance of Pak-US ties, the envoy cited the presence of 80 US firms in Pakistan, he said that Washington has a standing advantage because of its companies’ experience in Pakistan spanning several decades and their current investment infrastructure in the country.
In the field of technology and education, he termed the recently renewed Islamabad-Washington Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement transformative and insisted that its potential should be completely utilized for higher education, research, technological and development collaboration.
Identifying the fields of agriculture, IT, energy, and mineral extraction, Ambassador Masood Khan showcased the tremendous potential for investors to invest in Pakistan via the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC).
“We also need to cooperate in the realm of renewables, education, healthcare, and IT sector, mainly in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The IT field is transformative for Pakistan, and the US, particularly tech entrepreneurs and main capitalists, are heavily investing in Pakistan.” he said.
Masood Khan also spoke regarding Pakistan-India ties and the importance of dialogue to resolve long-standing issues, including the resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir, as per the UNSC resolutions.
He said “The quest for peace must continue. And our stance has been that we should resolve the outstanding issues between Pakistan and India through dialogue.”
He said that Pakistan had strong relations with China which were not at the expense of the US. “For the stability in the world, we must commit ourselves to the global humanitarian law,” he added.
