ISLAMABAD: US Charge d’Affaires in Pakistan, Natalie A. Baker, has said that Pakistan is a sovereign country and it should not get trapped in the debt of any other country.
Speaking to the media informally at the President House on Sunday, she said that Pakistan should fully implement its privatisation programme, and that the success of Pakistan’s economic strategy depends on complete adherence to the IMF’s reform programme. The United States will continue to support Islamabad in this regard, she added.
The US Charge d’Affaires attended the investiture ceremony at the President House, where President Asif Ali Zardari awarded the country’s highest civil award, the “Nishan-e-Pakistan”, to visiting Jordanian King Abdullah II.
Responding to a question, the US Charge d’Affaires said that the IMF wants economic reforms in Pakistan that would lead to a better and more sustainable economy. She added that the United States already has a strong and ongoing economic relationship with Pakistan.
To a query about Pakistan’s close ties with China, she said that Pakistan is a free and sovereign country that could have ties with any country of the world but it has to cautiously guard its economic independence and interests. Any scheme that could become source of debt trap for any country is cause of concern for the whole world, she added. She said that Washington is fully aware of the sensitivity of Pakistan’s relations with China. She stressed that Pakistan’s sovereignty is extremely important to the US, and that America is wholeheartedly supporting Pakistan.
Answering another question, she said that President Donald Trump is keen to visit Pakistan and as soon as he finds time from his hectic global engagements, he would undertake Pakistan’s visit. She paid rich tribute to President Trump and said he is a man of peace and Pakistan rightly proposed his name for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Replying to a question, she said that she has visited various cities in Pakistan, but has not yet been to Azad Jammu and Kashmir. She expressed her desire to visit there.
The ceremony was also attended by Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Saeed Ahmad Al-Malikey, British High Commissioner Jane Marriott, Azerbaijan Ambassador Khazar Farhadov, Bahrain Ambassador Muhammad Ebrahim Muhammad Abdelqader, who is also the dean of Arab Diplomatic Corps, Jordanian Ambassador Dr. Maen Khreasat and Qatar’s acting ambassador Nayef Shahein R. Al-sulaiti.
Meanwhile, US Charge d’Affaires Natalie Baker congratulated Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, on his brother’s unopposed election to the National Assembly from Gujranwala.
Speaking with him at a reception at the President’s House on Sunday, she said that this reflects the public’s trust in his government and his family.
She was informed that Tarar had defeated Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in the National Assembly elections in Lahore, to which she also expressed delight.
Tarar told the US Charge d’Affaires that after the electoral victory, when he met Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, he shook hands with him, and Bilawal stepped forward, hugged him, and congratulated him. Natalie Baker expressed her pleasure at this, saying that such actions promote democracy and are a hallmark of a healthy democratic system.
Tarar agreed with Natalie Baker’s view and thanked her. She was also pleased to learn that Tarar’s grandfather had also served as President and had resided in the same President’s House where the event was being held.
