WASHINGTON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will meet United States President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday, in what will be their first formal engagement since Sharif took office last year.
According to Trump’s public schedule released by the White House, the meeting will take place at the Oval Office at 4.30 p.m. (2030GMT)…around 1:30 am (PST).
The two are expected to discuss issues of mutual interest, as well as the regional and global situation, Radio Pakistan reported.
Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, who arrived in Washington on Wednesday, will also join the discussions.
It follows two meetings between Trump and the Pakistan Army chief in June and August, marking a rare diplomatic development.
Ties between Islamabad and Washington have improved in recent months, with the two sides last month sealing a trade deal and devising plans to jointly explore oil reserves in the South Asian country.
‘Relations with Pakistan are different from India’
On Tuesday, Shehbaz Sharif was among a select group of eight leaders who met Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
A senior US State Department official told reporters that Washington values its relationship with Islamabad.
“Relations with Pakistan are different from our ties with India, we would not let our relationship with one country impact our friendship with another,” the official said, adding that both South Asian countries remain important for the United States.
The official noted that American companies are investing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in Pakistan’s mineral sector and are ready to do the same in oil exploration.
“We see our economic relations with Pakistan growing rapidly, American companies are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the discovery of minerals in Pakistan, the official said and added that “We are ready to do the same for discovery of oil,”.
Counterterrorism and regional cooperation
On counterterrorism, the US official acknowledged Pakistan’s assistance in “capturing terrorists from Afghanistan,” and stressed that the two countries continue to cooperate in bringing “peace and prosperity in South Asia and the Middle East.”
“We work together in many fields in the region,” the official added.
Diplomatic sources suggested that Prime Minister Sharif may address Pakistani media at the end of his New York visit, where he is expected to outline key points from his discussions with Trump.
