Ties with US very important for Pakistan: Ambassador Chaudhry

WASHINGTON: Describing relationship with the United States as one of the most important for Pakistan, Ambassador Aizaz Chaudhry has expressed the hope that the long-standing partnership the two countries enjoy will be further cemented in the years to come.

He was speaking to a group of 96 Pakistani students, who arrived in Washington DC this week through the Global Undergraduate Exchange Programme (Global-UGRAD) for Pakistan, launched in 2010 and works under the aegis of US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

The students visited the embassy on Thursday where Ambassador Chaudhry shared with them vital foreign policy issues, particularly the Pak-US relations, and the economic and security situation in Pakistan vis-a-vis rapidly evolving regional scenario.

“Our relationship with the US is one of the most important bilateral relationships for us. We have partnered with the US in combating terrorism and extremism because we believe that whenever the two countries have worked together, it has benefitted both Pakistan and the United States”, said the Ambassador.

He said that people of Pakistan and America shared a fundamental desire for stability, peace and regional and global economic development, adding that these goals could only be achieved through education.

The Ambassador emphasized that the seven decades of cooperation, ranging from trade to education between Pakistan and United States symbolizes the long-standing partnership between the two countries. He expressed confidence in further fortification of this long standing partnership in the years to come.

He encouraged the students to apply the skills which they will learn and productively use the connections made during their stay in the United States, in their professional and personal lives. He expressed the hope that this program and the semester-long stay of the students in the United States will help polish their professional and leadership skills.

Teresa Mastrangelo, Senior Programme Director, Department of State thanked the Embassy and the Ambassador for hosting luncheon and giving an overwhelming welcome to the participants of the programme. She briefed the Ambassador and the participants about the programme and its history.

Participants of this year’s programme belong to multifarious academic fields ranging from Engineering, Business, Medicine and Social sciences, and originate from different areas of Pakistan, including the remote areas of Gilgit Baltistan (GB) and FATA region. To date, around 1300 young Pakistani students have benefitted from this very initiative.