Pak-US ties must be based on trust: Zardari

Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari has said that his government believes in a sustainable and multifaceted relationship with the US based on principles of sovereign equality and trust.

Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari has said that his government believes in a sustainable and multifaceted relationship with the US based on principles of sovereign equality and trust.

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Talking to a delegation of US lawmakers comprising Senators Robert P Casey, Sheldon Whitehouse, Michael Bennet and Richard Blumenthal, Zardari on Saturday said the two countries should not let isolated incidents affect their ties.

“President Zardari reiterated that the two countries should not let some isolated incidents affect their equation and to undo the efforts of building a multifaceted and long-term relationship,” president’s spokesman Farhatullah Babar said.

Zardari said that clearly defining and following mutually agreed terms of engagement is necessary to avoid operational irritants that hamper the relationship. This, he said, was
also essential in view of divergent positions and interests on different issues.

The presidnt also called for exercising restraints by both countries in issuing any statement that could potential impact the relationship, Babar said.

Zardari said that recent developments at the regional and international level make it necessary for the two countries to jointly work for the region's stability, on the one hand, and to realise mutually agreed upon goals, on the other. Fight against militants was also discussed during the meeting.

The president is said to have stressed the need for the international community to support Pakistan's people and civilian law-enforcement agencies in the fight against militancy.