US applauds Pakistan's backchannel role on Iran
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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has expressed appreciation for Pakistan's continued willingness to play a constructive role in mediating conversations with Iran and its commitment to preserving regional stability during a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.
"The two also discussed prospects for deepening bilateral counterterrorism cooperation, including countering ISIS-K, and the upcoming US-Pakistan Counterterrorism Dialogue in Islamabad this August," the State Department said in the readout of the meeting.
"The Secretary underscored the importance of expanding mutually beneficial bilateral trade and exploring prospects for enhancing collaboration in the critical minerals and mining sectors," it added.
In a post on X, Dar described the meeting as "a comprehensive discussion on the full spectrum of bilateral relations," reaffirming Pakistan's commitment to a long-term partnership with the US. He said the talks included a renewed focus on economic, trade, investment, IT/AI, and counterterrorism cooperation.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the United States and Pakistan were "very close" to a trade deal that could come within days, but comments from the US after Dar met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio mentioned no timeline.
"I think we are very close to finalising a deal with US. Our teams have been here in Washington, discussing, having virtual meetings and a committee has been tasked by the prime minister to fine-tune now," Dar said in a discussion at the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington.
"It's not going to be months, not even weeks, I would say (just) days," he said.
Under US President Donald Trump, Washington has attempted to renegotiate trade agreements with many countries that he threatened with tariffs over what he calls unfair trade relations.
Many economists dispute Trump's characterisation. The US State Department and Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in separate statements after Rubio's meeting with Dar, said the two stressed in their discussion the importance of expanding trade and ties in critical minerals and mining.
A post by Rubio on X after the meeting and the State Department's statement mentioned no timeline for finalising a trade deal.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar has underlined the need for a sustainable architecture of peace in South Asia and said the United States as a global power and a partner has a constructive and stabilising role to play.
Talking about ceasefire between India and Pakistan in May 2025, he said the US emerged as the credible arbiter of peace and stability in South Asia.
He thanked US President Trump for facilitating ceasefire between India and Pakistan.
"We are committed to sustaining the ceasefire unlike our neighbour. We believe in peace and we never escalated as the first mover and we only acted in self-defence according to the United Nations charter," he explained.
He said Pakistan's relationship with the United States was enduring, wide ranging and evolving.
"It has proved to be a consequential partnership whenever the two countries converged on global issues. We are encouraged by the upward trajectory in our bilateral partnership since President Trump assumed office."
He said he held a very productive meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the two sides agreed on our shared commitment to deepen and broaden relations between Pakistan and the United States.
"Our nations are coming closer and we have already made progress in relations in the span of six months."
He recalled that in his joint address to the Congress, President Trump recognized Pakistan's vital assistance in battling global terrorism.
He said the world was changing at a rapid pace and old certainties were giving way to the new realities.
Pakistan believed in peace through resilience and responsibility, he stressed adding Pakistan was a youthful nation of 240 million people, fifth largest in the world and a nuclear power.
He said, "We are peace seeking and peace loving nation and stability in South Asia is vital for us and for the world."
Pakistan believed in the paradigm of peace through strength and dialogue to resolve issues, he said adding Pakistan has taken tough decisions to surmount certain challenges to its economy.
"We concluded the successful IMF programme in pursuit of structural and macroeconomic reforms," he apprised.
"Recent improvements in macroeconomic indicators are evident by the improvement in current account balance, declining inflation and rebuilding of foreign exchange reserves," he informed.
He said terrorism remained a challenge for Pakistan and the government was fighting back.
"Democracy in Pakistan is not only functioning but thriving and the government is committed to human development with substantial investments in health, skill development and social protection," he noted.
The DPM said. "In the realm of governance and political reform we remain committed to deepening rule of law, freedom of expression and pluralism, the values we share with the American people."
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