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Saturday May 18, 2024

‘SpaceX rockets marvel of technology, manifestation of Elon Musk’s visionary leadership’

Pakistani envoy also visited Starlink’s manufacturing facility in California where he was briefed on the tech giant's operations

By Web Desk
May 04, 2024
A representational image of Space Xs Falcon 9 rocket being launched on April 29, 2024. — X/@SpaceX
A representational image of Space X's Falcon 9 rocket being launched on April 29, 2024. — X/@SpaceX

Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States Masood Khan visited SpaceX headquarters in California and lauded the space exploration company for making notable headway in technology via praiseworthy innovations.

"SpaceX rockets are a marvel of technology and innovation, a manifestation of the visionary leadership of Elon Musk," Ambassador Khan said in a statement on social media platform X.

Furthermore, the envoy also visited Starlink facility where he was briefed on the latter's operations and even toured its manufacturing facility.

Pakistans Ambassador to the US Masood Khan (centre) poses for a photo during his visit at SpaceXs headquarters in California on May 3, 2024. — X/@Masood__Khan
Pakistan's Ambassador to the US Masood Khan (centre) poses for a photo during his visit at SpaceX's headquarters in California on May 3, 2024. — X/@Masood__Khan

Pakistani content on Netflix

Prior to his visit to Musk's company's the envoy met California's Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis in Los Angeles on Thursday.

During the meeting, Governor Kounalakis offered to help place Pakistani film content on the renowned over-the-top (OTT) streaming platform Netflix to encourage cultural and people-to-people ties between the two countries.

If materialised, the development will greatly boost the presence of Pakistani content on a global scale owing to Netflix's wide-scale audience — which according to Statista has as many as 269 million paid subscribers in the first quarter of 2024.

Stressing that the US had the best technological and labour practices, she also offered her support in strengthening the bilateral cooperation between the State of California and Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the ambassador, while underscoring the connection between Silicon Valley — a term used to describe a certain part of California that is home to numerous high-tech companies and businesses — highlighted that Pakistani diaspora in the US, as well as American firms, were investing in Pakistan's technology sector.

He also pointed out the potential of expanding the scope of cooperation between the two countries in the renewable energy sector.

Lauding the governor's role in the establishment of the Punjab-California Sister State relationship, Khan accentuated the need to boost the cooperation under the initiative to the "next level".

California Governor Eleni Kounalakis (second left) pictured alongside Pakistans Ambassador to the US Masood Khan (third left) on May 2, 2024. — X/@Masood__Khan
California Governor Eleni Kounalakis (second left) pictured alongside Pakistan's Ambassador to the US Masood Khan (third left) on May 2, 2024. — X/@Masood__Khan

Additionally, the envoy addressed the issue of agricultural development noting that Islamabad seeks Washington's expertise in agriculture modernisation, hybrid seed development and climate-smart crops.

He also noted the existing cooperation between Faisalabad's Agriculture University and its partner institution in the US.

Prior to this, Khan attended a luncheon hosted by World Affairs Council of Orange County where he said that Pakistan neither wanted to "choose" the US or China, but instead, he added, Islamabad can in fact act as an economic bridge between the two countries.

Accentuating the significance of Pak-US relations and the bilateral cooperation in the fields of education, agriculture, and manufacturing industry, the envoy called for the need to bolster understanding and remove misconceptions between the two countries.

He also stressed people-to-people exchanges with visits of students, academics, lawmakers, government officials, traders and investors and underscored that Pakistan's tech sports to the US amounting $1.4 billion in 2023.