COAS, FM discuss upcoming strategic dialogue with US
* Meeting marks first-ever visit by an army chief to FO
* COAS, chief of naval staff to visit US for participation in talks
By Sajjad Malik
ISLAMABAD: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Kayani visited the Foreign Office (FO) on Friday to discuss preparations for an upcoming strategic dialogue with the US.
It was the first-ever visit by an army chief to the Foreign Office in the capacity of the head of the armed forces.
Diplomatic sources said Kayani met Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi – who would lead a high-level delegation at the dialogue scheduled for later this month. They said Kayani and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Noman Bashir would also visit the US to participate in the dialogue, in addition to other senior civil and military officials.
The sources said Kayani and Qureshi also discussed recent engagements with India, Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s visit and ongoing efforts to rid the country of terrorism.
Pakistan is attaching great importance to the strategic dialogue with the US and extensively preparing for the talks, which would come at a crucial time when Pakistan is poised to play a critical role in Afghanistan – where US-led international troops are battling a Taliban insurgency.
The next round of the strategic dialogue was earlier expected to take place on the eve of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Pakistan last year, but the two sides limited the discussion to upgrading such interactions.
Later, US special envoy Richard Holbrooke – during a visit in January – met Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir to decide the modalities for the restructured dialogue process.
The two countries agreed to launch the strategic dialogue in March 2006 during a visit by former US president George W Bush to Pakistan, and the first round of talks was held in Washington in April 2006. The second round was held in Pakistan in September 2007 – when then US deputy secretary of state John Negroponte led the US delegation at the talks.
Separately, the chief of army staff also called on Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani at the Prime Minister House on Friday.
The two discussed the security situation in the country during the meeting.