It’s not responsibility of Pakistan to satisfy US: Pak Defence Minister

NewsBharati    15-Sep-2017
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Islamabad, September 15: After US claimed that Pakistan isn't doing enough against terrorist havens in the country, Islamabad said that it's not its responsibility to satisfy Washington.

"We are here to give our point of view logically and with evidence. We will explain our position. But it's not for us to satisfy them," Defence Minister Khurram Dastgir said. Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif is to meet US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson this month.

 

“We are here to give our point of view logically and with evidence. We will explain our position. But it’s not for us to satisfy them,” Dastgir told reporters at the defence ministry.

While talking to reporters, Dastgir’s word said, “Reassessing ties with the US”, and has simultaneously undertaken a regional outreach ahead of talks with the US on future bilateral engagement.

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, after accompanying Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to the UN General Assembly session in New York next week, is expected to visit Washington for the awaited meeting with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Dastgir said the two countries needed a frank and candid dialogue on the issues concerning them, as differences between them would reflect in Afghanistan and other regional issues.

The defence minister bemoaned the fact that the US did not share Pakistan’s threat perception about India, which was not only indulging in warmongering but also building up its military capabilities.

He also noted that a nexus between the United States, India and Afghanistan in Kabul threatened Pakistan. “The US knows all, but ignores the threats faced by us because of its strategic interests.”

Notably, China had jumped to the defence of Pakistan in the wake of US President Donald Trump's stern warning to it over providing safe havens to terrorists, saying that Islamabad is at the frontline of combating terrorism.

US President Trump, in his first prime-time televised address to announce his Afghanistan and South Asia policy, hit out at Pakistan for providing safe havens. Trump slammed Pakistan for its support to terror groups and warned Islamabad of consequences if it continues to do so.