Pakistan wants ‘enduring relationship’ with US — army chief

Pakistan's Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa (right) meets US Charge d’Affairs to Pakistan Angela Aggeler in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on October 18, 2021. (Photo courtesy: ISPR)

• Statement comes amid deteriorating Islamabad-Washington ties over way forward in Afghanistan
• Top US official earlier this month said US didn’t see itself building “broad relationship” with Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s army chief on Monday said his country wanted continued bilateral engagement and an ‘enduring relationship’ with the United States, amid deteriorating ties between Washington and Islamabad over the way forward in a Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. 
The statement comes after a visit earlier this month by US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. 
Sherman came to Islamabad from India where she told a gathering Washington did not see itself building a “broad relationship” with Islamabad. 
After meeting with Sherman, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan sought a “broad-based, long-term and lasting relationship” with the US that was grounded in economic cooperation and mutual promotion of peace in the region. 
“Pakistan desires to maintain the tradition of bilateral engagement and wishes for an enduring relationship with United States,” the Pakistani military’s media wing quoted Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa as telling US Charge d’Affairs to Pakistan Angela Aggeler at a meeting in Rawalpindi. 
“COAS also reiterated the need for global convergence on Afghanistan for avoiding humanitarian crisis and coordinated efforts for economic uplift of the Afghan people.” 
The two figures discussed the security situation in Afghanistan and bilateral cooperation in various fields, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). 
The US diplomat appreciated Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan, efforts for regional stability and pledged that the US would play its role to improve diplomatic cooperation with Pakistan at all levels. 
Despite being allies in the war on terror, Pakistan and the US have had a complicated relationship, bound for decades by Washington’s dependence on Islamabad to supply its troops in Afghanistan but plagued by accusations that Pakistan was playing a “double game.” Pakistan denies it. 
The mistrust between the two countries has significantly grown since the Taliban overran Afghanistan in mid-August.