Details of Nawaz-Trump call were shared with permission: Tariq Fatemi

WASHINGTON: The Nawaz-Trump phone conversation episode took a new turn on Wednesday when Special Assistant to the Prime Minister of Pakistan on Foreign Affairs, Tariq Fatemi, said that the details of the conversation between the Pakistani premier and the US President-elect had shared after obtaining permission from the Trump team. 

According to details, Tariq Fatemi met United States Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Wednesday and conveyed warm wishes of the Prime Minister with regard to the recent US Presidential elections that were held. Fatemi expressed the hope that ties between both USA and Pakistan would strengthen further after the transfer of power in Washington took place. 

After the meeting, Tariq Fatemi said that details of the conversation between PM Nawaz and Donal Trump, in which the latter had referred to the former as a 'terrific guy' and had described Pakistanis as the most 'intelligent people',were shared after obtaining permission from the Trump team. 

After the PM's Office released the readout of the whole conversation between the two world leaders, foreign media expressed shock at Trump's admiration for Pakistan, keeping in mind his intentions to ban Muslims from entering the United States, which he expressed during his election campaign. 

Former diplomats and political commentators, both in Pakistan and abroad, had slammed the government after the PM's office had shared the details of the conversation that had taken place between Trump and Nawaz, claiming that diplomatic norms had been breached.